SE COND

EDITION

Three

Shillings &

Sixpence

Net

Transformers and Chokes

for the

WILLIAMSON
NATIONAL
ON

TESTS

Tested for:

OF

PHYSICAL LABORATORY
REPORT

TRANSFORMER (Marked: Lab: Output, Series II)

Vortexion Ltd., 257/263

The series resistance and inductance of the primary

winding with the secondary winding open-circuited,
was measured at 50 cycles per second with 5 and 20
volts applied. The room temperature was 1 "oC.
The results are given in Table 1.
TABLE

5
20

The Broadway, London, S.W.19.

The series resistance and inductance of the primary

winding with the secondary winding short-circuited,
and of half the primary winding with the other half
short-circuited were measured at 1,000 cycles per
second. About 10 volts were applied. The results
are given in Table n.

TABLE

Primary Resistance and Inductance

at 50 c/s
Voltage

AMPLIFIER

Resistance (0)

Inductance (H)

4 700
7 900

95
142
Date:

11

Resistance and Inductance at 1,000 c/s

Connections Resistance (0) Inductance (mH)

Pril:;Yho:nd-

!:rr;mar;hO:

2nd June, 1951.

Reference:

495
222

5.3
5.5

E.475.100.

This Laboratory Model Transformer Series n easily permits

6 db more feedback with complete stability than the maximum
of our Series 1 which Mr. D. T. N. Williamson described.
PRI C ES

Series n Output Transformers as above

7.

7.0

Series I Output Transformers

6.

6. 0

Mains Transformers

4.

4.0

. ..

1. 11. 6

CHOKES 1012H, 150 mA . . .

CHOKES 30/H, 20 mA

2. 0. 6

Please write for Catalogue WA/5

\r () 11 T E X I () N

LT'I) .

257263, THE BROADWAY, WIMBLmON,LONDON,S.W.l9

Telephones:

LIBerty

2814 and 6242-3

Telegrams:

"VORTEXION, WIMBLE, LONDON'

The Williamson
Amplifier
A
reprinted

Collection of

Articles.

from Wireless World,

on

Design for a High-quality Amplifier

By

D. T. N. WILLIAMSON
( formerly of the
with Ferranti

Valve Company, now

Research
Laboratories)

M.O.

Published for

LONDON:

ILIFFE

& SONS,

LTD.

CHOICE

YOllH

ITS

If the components are below standard, there's not much

justification for expecting first-class results. It has been our
experience and that of many satisfied customers that in
building the Williamson Amplifier it definitely pays to use the
best components. All items supplied are new and guaranteed.

I SPECIAL I

WILLIAMSON

AMPLIFIER

(Fig. I)

TWO COMPLETE KITS OF ALL SPECIFIED PARTS EACH INCLUDING PARTRIDGE

OUTPUT TRANSFORMER - DRILLED STEEL CHASSIS - MARCONIIOSRAMICOSSOR
VALVES - G.E.C. AND T.C.C. CONDENSERS THROUG HOUT.
With ELLlSON MAINS TRANSFORMER AND CHOKES
With PARTRIDGE MAINS TRANSFORMER AND CHOKES

PACKING 1 01- RETURNABLE.

CARRIAGE IN U.K. 7s. 6d.

FADI N G C O N TROL (FIG. 18)

RESISTORS-See Below.
CONDENSERS, T.C.C. AND DUBI L l E R:
1-.1 mfd. 350v. .. . ... ...
1-4 mfd. 250v. .. . . .. ...... 17/2
1-2 mfd. 350v. ... ......... 8/6

MAIN AMPLIFIER (FIG. I)

PARTRIDGE OUTPUT TRANSFO R M E RS: 1 .7, 0.95 or 3.6 o h m

Secondaries: Wire ended 6}1}-; Tag Board 6}16}6; Potted
7}S}3.
MAINS TRANSFORME RS:
56}3
ELLlSON
PARTRIDG E . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 74}SMOOTHING CHOKES:
1 3 H. 200 mA . . . . . . . .. . . . . 40/3
PARTRIDGE 25 H. 60 mA. 20}9
10 H. 150 mA . . . . . . . . . . . . 23/3
E LLlSON 30 H. 20 mA .. . . 15}8
VALVES:
MARCONI OSRAM KT66 MATCHED PAIRS . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . ... SO}2
MARCONI OSRAM L63 14/4
COSSOR 5 3KU . . . . . .. . . 21}6
RESISTORS. A full range is available, i n clud i n g:
22K I watt Matched, Pr. 2/47K 2 watt Matched, Pr. 3}1500 h m 3 watt . . . . .. . . . . . .
1}6
CHASSIS :
STE E L DRILLED FOR KITS 27/6.
STE E L 17in. x l O i n . x 3 i n . UNDRILLED 12/6.
ALUMINIUM 17in. x l O i n . x 2ti n . UNDRILLED 12}6.
CONDENSERS T.C.C.:
1-8+8 mfd. 450 v. ea. 7/6
2-8 mfd. 600v. . . . . . . ea. 15/1/2
1-200 pfd. 350 v . . . . ..
2/2-.05 mfd. 350v. ... ..
2-.25 mfd. 350 v.
2/8
1-8 mfd. 500v....... . . . ..
6/6
POTENTIOMETERS:
2- 100 ohms COLVERN ea. 7/2.
PRE-AMPLIFIER (FIGS. 13 and 27)
RESISTORS-See Below.
CONDENSERS, T.C.C. AND DUBILlER:
1 - 1 6 mfd. 450 v. . .. ea.
1-.5 mfd. 350 v. . ..... ea. 3/I - l OO pfd. 350v. . . . . . . .
.
1/6
I-50 mfd. 12 v. . . . . . . ..
2/6
1-4000 pf. 10% .. . . . . ..
1-.05 mfd. 500v. ... ..
VALVE: I EF37A . . . . . . .. 25/1
PRE-AMP WITH HIGH PASS FILTER (FIGS.

Send for Detailed Price List, Post Free.

2/3

T O N E COMPENSATI O N A N D FILTER UNIT (FIG. 19)

RESISTORS-See Below.
CONDENSERS, T.C.C. AND DUBILlER:
3-50 mfd. 12 v. . . .... ea. 2/9
1 -.25 mfd. 500v. . . . ea. 2/10
1-.01 mfd. 350v.
..
1/8
1 - I OOO pf.
..
1/6
50/500 pf. Silver Mica5% ea., 1/4-1/7; I
ea., 1/6-2(3.
2-8 mfd. 450v. ... . . . ..
3/6
I - IS O pf. Trimmer
1/6
2/3-.05 mfd. 350v. ... ..
2- 1 6 mfd. 500v. ... ..
6/SWITCHES:
I - I pole,S way,S bank.. 17(6
I-S.P.D.T. . . . .. . . . . ..
3/8
I-D.P.D.T. . . . . . . .. . ..
3/11
MAINS TRANSFORMER:
325 v. 45 mA. etc.: PARTRIDGE 42/- ; EL L lSON 32/3.
S MOOTHING CHOKE-PARTRI D G E 75H. 25 mA. 20/9.
VALVES: 3-E F37A, ea., 25/1; 1 -6X5, 15}1.
RADIO FEEDER U NIT (FIG. 20)
(a) VARIABLE TUNING MODEL
RESISTORS: See Below.
CONDENSERS:
3-.1 mfd. 350v . . . . . . . ea. 2/3
2- 1 00 pf. . . . . . . . . . ... ea. 1}4
1 - 1 6 mfd. 450v. . . . ..
5/1-2 Gang 500 pf. ... ..
9/6
COI LS-ATKINS HIGH "Q "- I each AL2/R, AL2/W ea. 4/-.
DIALS-JB .. AI RPLANE" 13/-; or .. SQUAREPLANE" 12}9.
VALVES: I-EF39, 18/8; I - E F37A,25}1.
(b) PRE-SET TUNING MODELS
SWITCH 2 wafers, 9/6.
COI LS-ATKINS HIGH " Q ", ea., 4}-.
TRI M M E RS, ea., 1/6 to 2/3.

5/2/9
2}1

IS and 29)

RESISTORS-See Below.
CONDEN SERS, T.C.C. AND DUBILlER:
2- 1 6 mfd. 450v . . . . ..
2-.5 mfd.350v . . . . . . ea. 3/1 -4000 pf. . . .. . . . . . . . . ..
2/6
1-.01 mfd.2% . . . ..
3/6
1-.5 mfd. 500v. . . . ..
2-5000 pf. Matched
2/9
1-.02 mfd. 350v. . .. ..
2-50 mfd. 12 v. ...... ..
1-.25 mfd. 500v. . . . ..
1/6
I-lOO pfd. 350v. . . . ..
VALVES: 3-EF37A . . . .. 25}1

19 Gns.
21 Gns.

RESISTORS

5/6/3
3/10
1/9
2}10

COM POSITION: * and t watt 20%, 6d. eac h .

! a n d t watt 1 0%. 8d. each.; I watt 1/- each
HIGH STABILITY * and t watt I % and 2%, 2/- each.
* watt 5%. 1/- each. ; t watt 5%, 1/3 each.
NOTE: PRICES AS RULING AT DATE OF PURCHASE.

Prompt Delivery.

Terms C.W.O. or C.O.D.

Postage Extra

OVERSEAS EN QUIRIES IN VITED.

I IOv. WINDINGS AND TROPICALISED COMPONENTS AVAILABLE.

TELE-RADIO
177a

&.

189,

(1943) LIMITED

EDGWARE

ROAD,

LONDON,

W.2

Shop Hours: Monday-Saturday 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

9 a.m.
I p.m.
Thursday

Tel: PAD 6116

PAD 5606

The Williamson Amplifier

CONTENTS
Page

Introduction

Basic

Details

Requirements:
Alternative Specification

(April 1947)

11

of Chosen Circuit and Its Performance

(May 1947)

NEW VERSION
Design

14

Data:
Modifications: Further Notes

(August 1949)

Design of Tone Controls

Design for a Radio
Replies to

and Auxiliary

Feeder

Queries Raised

Gramophone

Circuits

20

(October and November 1949)

Unit

(December 1949)

by Constructors

(January 1950)

Modification for high-impedance Pickups and Long-Playing Records

(May 1952)

30
34
35

The journal for all radio technicians

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Introduction
Introduced by Wireless World in 1947 as merely one of a series of
amplifier designs, the Williamson has for several years been widely

accepted as the standard of design and performance wherever amplifiers

and sound reproduction are discussed. Descriptions of it have been

published in all the principal countries of the world, and so there are
reasonable grounds for assuming that its widespread reputation is based
solely on its qualities.

This booklet includes all the arcticles written by D. T. N. Williamson

on the amplifier. Both the 1947 and 1949 versions are reprinted, as the

alternative output transformer ratios cover a wide range of requirements. Modifications and additions include pre-amplifier circuits and
an r.f. unit, with recently published information on adaptation to high
impedance pickups and correction for 33 r.p.m. records.

We would stress the importance, if the full potentialities of the

amplifier are to be realized, of following the author's recommendations

in detail.

Even in the U.S.A., where several modified versions have

been described, many users adhere to the designers exact specification

with the original valve types.

It is not the circuit alone, but the

properties of the valves and such components as the output transformer

together with the welding of theor y and practice into a rational layout,
which which produce the results.

Editor, Wireless World.

<W
POTTED COMPOUND FILLED TRANSFORMERS & CHOKES

Potted com ponents are i n constant demand fo r the

WILLl AMSON AMPLIFIER AND PRE-AMPLlFIER.

WODEN

note the advantages

Made to the author's exact specification.

Smart appearance

and uniform

layout.

Absolute Reliability.

SEND FOR FURTHER PARTICULARS AND COMPLETE CATALOGUE.

WODEN TRANSFORMER [0 LTD

MOXLEl' nUllO BllSTON STJlFFS
P

ONE:

BILS

TO

41959

J.T.L.

The Williamson Amplifier

Basic Design Requirements:

Alternative Specifications
R
ECENT improvements in the

field of commercial sound

recording have made practicable the reproduction of a
wider range of frequencies than
hitherto. The useful range of
shellac pressings has been extended from the limited 50-8,000
c/s which, with certain notable
exceptions, has been standard
from 1930 until the present, to a
range of some 20-15,000 c/s. This
increase in the frequency range
has been accompanied by an
overall reduction in distortion and
the absence of peaks, and by the
recording of a larger volume range,
which combine to make possible a
standard of reproduction not previously attainable from disc recordings. Further improvements,
notably the substitution of low
noise plastic material for the
present shellac composition, are
likely to provide still further
enhanced performance.
The resumption of the television
service with its first class sound
quality, and the possible extension
of u.h.f. high-quality
trans
missions, increase the available
sources of high-quality sound.
Full utilization of these recordings and transmissions demands
reproducing equipment with a
standard of performance higher
than that which has served in the
past. Extension of the frequency
range, involving the presence of
large-amplitude low-frequencysig
nals, gives greater likelihood of
intermodulation distortion in the
reproducing system, whilst the
enhanced treble response makes
this type of distortion more
readily detectable and undesirable.
Reproduction of sound by electrical means involves the amplification ofan electrical waveform
which should be an exact counterpart of the air pressure waveform
which constitutes the sound. The
purpose of the amplifier is to
produce an exact replica of the
electrical input voltage waveform
at a power level suitable for the

operation of the loudspeaker.

This in turn reconverts the electrical waveform into a corresponding sound pressure waveform,
which in an ideal system would
be a replica of the original.
The performance of an amplifier
intended to reproduce a given
waveform is usually stated in
terms of its ability to reproduce
accurately the frequency components of a mythical Fourier
analysis of the waveform. While
this method is convenient and
indeed corresponds to the manner
in which the mechanism of the
ear analyses sound pressure waveforms into component frequencies
and thereby transmits intelligence
to the brain, the fact that the
function of the system is to reproduce a waveform and not a band
of frequencies should not be
neglected. Sounds of a transient
nature having identical frequency
contents may yet be very different
in character, the discrepancy being
in the phase relationship of the
component frequencies.
The requirements of such an
amplifier may be listed as :(I) Negligible non-linear distortion up to the maximum rated
output. (The term "non-linear
distortion" includes the production of undesired harmonic frequencies and the intermodulation
of component frequencies of the
sound wave.) This requires that
the dynamic output/input characteristic be linear within close
limits up to maximum output at all
frequencies within the audible
range.
(2) (a) Linear frequency response within the audible frequency spectrum of 10-20,000 c/s.
(b) Constant power handling
capacity for negligible non-linear
distortion at any frequency within
the audible frequency spectrum.
This requirement is less stringent at the high-frequency end of
the spectrum, but should the
maximum power output/frequency
response at either end of the
7

spectrum (but especially, at the

low-frequency end) be substantially less than that at medium
frequencies,
filters must be
arrang ed to reduce the level of
these frequencies before they reach
the amplifier as otherwise severe
intermodulation will occur. This
is especially noticeable during the
reprodudction of an organ on
incorrectly designed equipment
where pedal notes of the order of
16-20 c/s cause bad distortion,
even though they may be in
audible in the sound output.
(3) Negligible phase shift with
in the audible range. Although
the phase relationship between
the component frequencies of a
complex steady-state sound does
not appear to affect the audible
quality of the sound, the same is
not true of sounds of a transient
nature, the quality of which may
be profoundly altered by disturbance of the phase relationship
between component frequencies.
(4) Good transient response. In
addition to low phase and frequency distortion, other factors
which are essential for the accurate reproduction of transient
wave-forms are the elimination of
changes in effective gain due to
current and voltage
- in any
stages, the utmost care in the
design of iron-cored components,
and the reduction of the number
of such components to a minimum.
Changes in effective gain during
low-frequency transients occur
in amplifiers with output stages
of the self-biased Class AB type,
causing serious distortion which
is not revealed by steady-state
measurements.
The transient
causes the current in the output
stage to rise, and this is followed,
at a rate determined by the time
constant of the biasing network,
by a rise in bias voltage which
alters the effective gain of the
amplifier
(5) Low output resistance.
This requirement is concerned
with the attainment of good

The Williamson Amplifier

salient features of se
methods are of
interest.
Push-pull triode
without
valves
of
the
feed
negative
back form
mainstay of present-day
highequip(b)
(a)
ment. A stage of
Fig. I. Output/input characteristics (a) without
this type has a
feedback (b) with negative feedback
number of disWith reasonable
frequency and transient response advantages.
in the power stage
from the loudspeaker system by
such an arrangement cannot be
ensuring that it has adequate
electrical damping.
The cone made to introduce non-linearity to
an extent less than that represen
movement of a moving-coil loud
speaker is restricted by air loading, ted by about 2-3 per cent
and resistance, harmonic distortion. The output/
and electro-magnetic damping. In input characteristic of such a stage
is a gradual curve as in Fig.
of a
loud
the
speaker, the efciency is rarely 1 (a). With this type of characteriswill be introduced at
higher than 5-10 per cent, and the tic
air loading, which determines the all signal levels and intermodularadiation, is not high. In order tion of the component signal
to avoid a high bass-resonance frequencies will occur at all levels.
The intermodulation with such a
frequency, the suspension
in a high-grade loudspeaker is characteristic is very considerable
kept low, and obviously the power and is responsible for the harsh
which
loss in such a suspension cannot ness mushiness
be large. Electro-magnetic damp- characterizes ampliers of this
ing is therefore important in type. In addition, further non
controlling the motion of the cone. linearity considerable inter
This
is proportional to the modulation will be introduced by
current which can be generated the output transformer core.
If the load impedance is chosen
in the coil circuit, and is therefore
to give maximum output the
proportional to the total resistance
of the circuit. Maximum damp- load impedance/output resistance
will be about
ing will be achieved when the coil ratio of the
for good
short-circuited, hence 2, which is
is
the output resistance of the
loudspeaker damping.
to produce an
It is
amplier should be much lower
adequate frequency response char
than the coil impedance.
(6) Adequate power reserve. acteristic in a multi-stage amplier of this type as the
of
The realistic reproduction of
orchestral music in an average multiple valve capacitances and
room requires peak power capa- the output transformer primary
bilities of the order of 15-20 and leakage inductances becomes
watts when the electro-acoustic
serious at the ends of the a.f.
transducer
is a bafe-loaded spectrum.
moving-coil loudspeaker system
The applica tion of negative feed
of normal
The use back to push-pull triodes results
of hornloaded loudspeakers may in the more or less complete solreduce the power requirement to
ution of the disadvantages out
the region of 10 watts.
lined above. Feedback should
be applied over the whole amThe Output Stage
plier from the output transformAn output of the order of 15-20 er secondary to the initial stage as
watts may be obtained in one of
this method corrects distortion
three ways, namely, push-pull
introduced by the output transtriodes, push-pull triodes with
former and makes no additional
negative feedback, or push-pull demands upon the output capabilitetrodes with negative feedback. ties of any stage of the amplier.
8

The functions of negative feedback are:(a) To improve the linearity

of the amplier and outputtransformer.
(b) To improve the frequency
response of the amplier and
output transformer.
(c) To reduce the phase shift
in the amplier and output transformer within the audible frequency range.
(d) To improve the low-frequency characteristics of the output
transformer,
particularly
defects due to t non-linear
relation between ux and magnetizing force.
(e) To reduce the
output
resistance of the amplier
(f) To reduce the
of
random changes of the parameters of the amplier and supply
voltage changes, and of any
spurious defects.
A stage of this type is capable
of fulllng highest
requirements in a sound reproducing system. The output / input
characteristic is of the type shown
in Fig. 1 (b), and is virtually
straight up to maximum output,
when it curves sharply with t
onset of grid current in the output stage. Non-linear distortion
can b reduced to a degree represented by less than 0.1 per cent
harmonic distortion,
with no

audible intermodulation.
frequency response of whole
amplier from input to outputtransformer secondary can be
made linear, and the power
handling capacity constant over
a range considerably wider than
that required for sound reproduction.
output resistance, upon
which the loudspeaker usually
depends for most of the damping
required, can be reduced to a
small fraction of the speech coil
impedance. A ratio of load impedance/output resistance (sometimes known as
damping factor) of 20-30 is easily obtained.
Kinkless or Beam output tetrodes used with negative
feedback can, with care, be made
to give a performance midway
between that of triodes with and
without feedback. The advantages
to be gained from the use of
tetrodes are increased power
ciency and lower drive voltage
requirements.

The Williamson Amplifier

It must be emphasized that the

characteristics of the stage are
dependent solely upon the char
acter and amount of the negative
feedback used.
The feedback
must remain effective at all
frequencies
within
the
a.f.
spectrum under all operating con
ditions, if the quality is not to
degenerate to the level usually
associated with tetrodes without
feedback. Great care must be
taken with the design and opera
tion of the amplifier to achieve
this, and troubles such as para5itic
oscillation and instability are
liable to be encountered.
\Vhen equipment has to be
operated from low-voltage power
supplies a tetrode stage with
negative feedback is the only
choice, but where power supplies
are not restricted, triodes are
preferable because of ease of
operation and certainty of results.
It appears then that the design
of an amplifier for sound repro
duction to give the highest possible
fidelity should centre round a
push- pull triode output stage and
should incorporate negative feed
back.
The most suitable types of valve
for this service are the PX25
and the KT66. Of these the KT66
is to be preferred since it is a
more modern indirectly-heated
type with a 6.3-volt heater, and
will simplify the heater supply
problem. Triode-connected it has
characteristics almost identical
with those of the PX25.
Using a supply voltage of some
440 volts a power output of 15
watts per pair may be expected.

The Output Transformer

The output transformer is prob
ably the most critical component
in a high-fidelity amplifier. An
incorrectly designed component
is capable of producing distortion
which is often mistakenly attribu
ted to the electronic part of the
amplifier. Distortion producible
directly or indirectly by the
output transformer may be listed
as follows :(a) Frequency distortion due
to low winding inductance, high
leakage reactance and resonance
phenomena.
(b) Distortion due to the phase
shift produced when negative
feedback is applied across the
transformer. This usually takes

the form of parasitic oscillation

due to phase shift produced in the
high frequency region by a high
leakage reactance.
(c) Intermodulation and har
monic distortion in the output
stage caused by overloading at low
frequencies when the primary
inductance is insufficient. This is
primarily due to a reduction in
the effective load impedance below
the safe limit, resulting in a very
reactive load at low frequencies.
This may cause the valves to be
driven beyond cut-off since the
load ellipse will tend to become
circular.
(d) Harmonic and intermodula
tion distortion produced by the
non-linear relation between flux
and magnetizing force in the core
material. This distortion is always
present but will be greatly aggra
vated if the flux density in the
core exceeds the safe limit.
(e) Harmonic distortion intro
duced by excessive resistance in
the primary winding.
The design of a practical trans
former has to be a compromise
between these conflicting require
ments.
At a low frequency fb' such that
the reactance of the output trans
former primary is equal to the
resistance formed by the load
resistance and valve a.c. resist
ances in parallel, the output
voltage will be 3db below that at
medium frequencies. At a fre
quency 3fb the response will be
well maintained, the transformer
reactance producing only 200phase
angle.
Similarly at the high
frequency end of the spectrum the
response will be 3db down at a
frequency ft such that the leakage
reactance is equal to the sum of
the load and valve a.c. resistances.
Again at a frequency ft/3 the

A
ALTERNATING EXCITATION VOLTAGE

Fig. 2. Variation of iron-cored

inductance with a.c. excitation.
9

response will be well maintained.

If then the required frequency
range in the amplifier is from
10-20,000 c/s, fb may be taken as
3.3 c/s and ft as 60 kc/so A trans
former which is only 3db down at
frequencies as widely spaced as
these would be difficult to design
for some conditions of operation,
and where this is so the upper
limit may be reduced, as the
energy content of sound at thes
frequencies is not usually high
The limiting factor will be the
necessity of achieving stability
when feedback is applied across
the transformer, i.e., that the loop
gain should be less than unity at
frequencies where the phase shift
reaches 180.
To illustrate the procedure,
consider the specification of an
output transformer coupling two
push-pull KT66 type valves to a
I5-ohm loudspeaker load.
Primary load impedance= IO,OOOn

Turns rat10 =

IO,OOO

--- = 25.8

:1

15
Effective a.c. resistance of valves
= 25000
Low-frequency Response
Parallel load and valve resist2500 X 10,000
ance =
=2000Q
12,500
fb =33 C/S(Wb=2I) response
should be 3db down.
Primary incremental inductance
2000
L = -- =95 H.
21
High-frequency Response
Sum of load and a.c. resistances
= IQ,OOO + 2500
= 12500 0
At ft = 60 kc/s (Wt = 376,000)'
response should be 3db down.
12,500
Leakage reactance
376
=33 mHo

A 20-watt transformer having 10

primary and 8 secondary sections
and using one of the better grades
of core material can be made to
comply with these requirements.
Winding data will be given in an
appendix (see page II).
Some confusion may arise when
specifying an output transformer
as the apparent inductance of
the windings will vary greatly
with the method of measurement.
The inductance of an iron-cored

The Williamson Amplifier

to a low value as it contains the
minimum number of stages. The
arrangement,
however,
has
a
number

of

disadvantages

render it unsuitable.

which

The input

voltage required by the phase

splitter is rather more than can
be obtained from the first stage

(a)

for a reasonable distortion with

the available h.t. voltage, and in
addition the phase splitter is
operating at an unduly high level.
The gain of the circuit is low even
if a pentode is used in the first
stage, and where a low-impedance
loudspeaker system is
sufficient

feedback

used,

voltage

in

will

be available.
The

addition

of

push-pull

driver
stage
to
the
previous
arrangement, as in Fig
3 (b),
provides a solution to most of the
difficulties. Each stage then wor1{S
well within its capabilities.

The

increased phase shift due to the

extra stage has not been found
unduly troublesome provided that
suitable precautions are taken.
The functions of phase splittcr
and push-pull driver stage may

(c )
Fig. 3.

be combined in a
" paraphase"

Block diagrams of circuit arrangements discussed in the text.

component is a function of

the

excitation,
the variation being
of the form shown in Fig. 2. The
exact
shape of
the curve is
dependent on the magnetization
characteristic for the core material.

the vector gain of the amplifier

and feedback network is greater
than unity.
The introduction of
more than one transformer into

The
maximum
induct:wce,
corresponding to point C occurs
when the core material is nearing

give rise to trouble from insta

bility. As it is desirable to apply

saturation and is commonly 4-6

feedback over the output trans

times the "low excitation" or

" incremental' value at A, which
corresponds to operation near the

feedback

ance corresponding to the voltage

swing at maximum output at
50 c / s will lie in the region of B

in Fig. 2.
In specifying

the

component,

the important value is the incre

mental inductance corresponding
to point A, since this value deter
mines the frequency response at
low outputs.

phase Shift
The reduction of phase shift in
amplifiers which are to operate
with negative ffedback
is of
prime importance, as instability

is

likely

to

grid

of

one

drive

(c).

valve

thc
The

is

fed

directly from the first stage, thc

other being fed from a resistancc
network between the anodes of
the driver valves as shown in
Fig. 4.
This arrangement forms
a good alternative to the preceding
one where it is desirable to use the
minimum number of valves.

former the rest of the amplifier

should be R-C coupled.

Alternative Circuits

origin of the magnetization curve.

In a correctly designed output
transformer the primary induct

path

giving

arrangement of Fig. 3

will result, should a phase shift

of 1800 occur at a frequency where

the

self-balancing

circuit

Although

the

amplifier

may

contain push-pull stages it is

desirable that the input and output

+------1'--1 1-
OUTPUT
I--

should be "single ended" and

have a common earth terminal.
Three circuit arrangements suggest
themselves.
The block diagram of Fig. 3 (a)
shows the simplest circuit arrange
ment.
preceded

The
by

output
a

valves

phase

are

splitter

which is driven by the first stage.

The feedback is taken from the
output transformer secondary to
the

cathode

of

the

first

stage.

This arrangement is advantageous

in

that

amplifier

the
can

phase
easily
10

shift

in

the

be reduced

Fig. 4.
Paraphase" circuit
combining the functions of
phase splitter and push-pull
driver stages.
"

The Williamson Amplier

Details of Chosen Circuit

and Its Performance
T

HE
considerations underlying the design of a high quality amplier were discussed in the rst part of this
article. A circuit of the complete
amplier is shown in Fig. 5. This
follows the basic arrangement of
Fig. 3 (b). design of the individual stages will not be treated
in detail, but a review of the
salient features may be of value.
As a measure of standardisation
all valves except those of the output stage are type L63, triodes of
about 8 , 000 a.c. resistance
Initial Stages. In order to

Fig. 5.

keep the phase shift in the amplier at low frequencies as small as

possible the rst stage has been
directly coupled to the phase
splitter,
eliminating one R-C
coupling. rst two stages are
thus designed as a single entity.
The phase-splitter section, which
consists of a triode with equal
loads in anode and cathode circuits, operates partly as a cathode
follower, its grid being some 100V
positive with respect to chassis.
ode of the rst triode is also
arranged to be about 100V positive and is coupled to the phase-

Circuit diagram of complete amplier.

Voltages underlined are peak signal voltages at 15W output.

CIRCUIT

R1
R2
R3

1 M
watt 20 per
33,000 1 watt 20
47,000 1 watt 20
R4
47 0
watt 10
R 5 , R 6, R 7 22,000 1 watt 10
0.47M watt 20
R 8, R 9
390
watt 10
R10
R 11, R13
39,000 2 watt 10
R12
25,000 1 watt wirewound variable.
R14 , R19
0.1 M watt 20

cent
"
"

R15 , R20
R16 , R18
R17 , R21

"

R 22

"

R 23 , R24
R 25

C 1 ,C2 , C 5
C 3 ,C 4
C 6 ,C 7

splitter grid. Due to the cathodefollower action of V2 the operating

conditions are not critical and no
trouble is likely to be encountered
from normal changes in valve
parameters.
The cathode bias
resistor of V1, to which feedback
is applied from the output transformer secondary, is kept as small
as practicable to avoid gain reduction in the rst stage, due to series
feedback.
Driver Stage .- The output from
the phase-spli tter is taken to the
push-pull driver stage. Provision
is made for varying the load re-

VALUES

1,000 watt 20 per cent

"
100
1 watt 20
100
2 watt wirewound variable.
150
3 wat t 20
"
100 watt 20
"
1,200 speech coil impedance,
watt 5
"
8F
450V, wkg.
0.05F 350V, wkg.
0.25F 350V, wkg.

C8
C9

8F 550V, wkg.
8F 600V, wkg.
30 H at 20 mA (min.)
CH 1
10 H at 150 mA (min.)
CH 2
Power transformer.
T
425-0-425 V.
Secondary
150 mA (min.) 5 V. 3A
6.3 V. 4A, c.t.
V1 to V4 L63
V5 , V 6 KT66.
V7
U52

The Williamson Amplifier

0
"-

-<>/

5
,,"

..

S .,

Iv

"-

f--

- - WITHOUT FEEDBACK

-- WITH FEEDBACK

... 1
1/

.,-. 05

10

INPUT VOLTS

l./

O'l
./

(R.M s.)

I- -

I '0

-fv
J

"/
I

IS

Fig. 6.
Input-output characteristic and harmonic
distortion curves, with and without feedback.
(Right)Oscillograms of input-output characteristic; left-hand
column, without feedback; right-hand column, with
feedback. (I) At 300 c!s with slight overload (2) At 300
eIs, output voltage 15% below maximum. (3) and (4)
Conditions as in (I) and (2) respectively, but at 30 c/s.

sistors of this stage which, in con

junction with a common unby
passed cathode bias resistor,
allows a considerable range of
adjustment to be made in the
drive voltages to the output valves
to compensate for any inequality
in gain.
Output Stage.-The balance of
quiescent anode current in the
output stage is a matter of some
importance, as it affects the per
formance of the output trans
former to a marked degree. In
this amplifier, provision is made,
by means of a network in the
cathode circuits of the KT66
valves, for altering the grid bias
of each valve, giving complete
control of the static conditions of
the stage.
A feature of this
arrangement is that the valves
operate with a common unby
passed cathode bias resistor,
which assists in preserving the
balance of the stage under
dynamic conditions.
Output
Transformer. - The
turns ratio of the output trans
former will be determined by the
impedance of the loudspeaker
load. It is convenient to make
each secondary section of such an

impedance that by series-parallel

arrangement a number of suitable
load impedances may be provided
utilizing all the sections of the
transformer. A suitable value of
impedance is 1.7 ohms per sec
tion, giving alternatives of 1.7,
6 . 8 , 15.3, 27 ohms, etc.
Winding data for a suitable
transformer are given in the
Appendix.
Negative Feedback Network.

The design of this amplifier is such

that no difficulty should be experi
enced in the application of nega
tive feedback up to a maximum
of some 30 db. Provided that the
threshold of instability is not
reached, the benefits of negative
feedback increase as the amount
of feedback is increased, at the
sole expense of loss of gain, but
there will be little if any audible
improvement to be gained with
this amplifier by increasing the
amount of feedback beyond 20 db.
The feedback network is a
purely resistive potential divider,
the bottom limb of which is the
cathode bias resistor 0f the first
stage.
With component values as
12

specified no trouble should be ex

perienced from instability due to
the effects of unintentional posi
tive feedback. Should instability
arise it will probably appear as
oscillation at a supersonic fre
quency. This may be transient,
occurring only at some part of the
cycle when the amplifier is oper
ated near maximum output. Its
cause may be bad layout or an
output transformer with a higher
leakage reactance than specified,
or it may be due to resonance in
the output transformer.
A remedy, which should only
be used as a temporary measure,
is to reduce the high-frequency
response of one of the amplifier
stages, so reducing the loop gain
at the frequency of oscillation to
a value below unity. This may
conveniently be done by connect
ing a small capacitor (say 200 pF)
in series with a 5,000 n resistor
from the anode of V, to chassis.

Performance
Linearity.-The

linearity of the
amplifier is well illustrated by the
series of oscillograms. These show
that, up to maximum output, the
linearity is of a high order, and

The Williamson Amplifier

that the overload characteristic is

of the desirable type shown in
Fig. I (b) in the previous issue.
The improvement due to the
application of negative feedback,
especially at low frequencies, is
the
by
demonstrated
clearly
oscillograms.
Equipment for measuring inter
modulation products was not
available, but measurement of the
total harmonic distortion was
made with an input frequency of
400 c /s. The result is shown in
Fig. 6, from which it will be seen
that the harmonic distortion at
maximum rated output (15 watts)
is less than o. I per cent. Inter
modulation, with this degree of
linearity, is not present to an
audible degree.
Frequency Resp onse .-The fre
quency response of the amplifier
is greatly dependent upon the
characteristics of the output trans
former. In the amplifier tested,
the output transformer had a
resonance at about 60 kc/s which
caused a sharp dip of 2.6 db
around this frequency. The char
acteristic within the audible range
from 10-20,000 c/s is linear with
in 0.2 db.
Phase Shift.-The excellence of
the frequency response character-

istic indicates that little phase

shift is present. Phase shift is only
apparent at the extremes of the
a.f. spectrum and never exceeds a
few degrees.
Output Resistance.-The out
put resistance of the amplifier is
0.5 ohms measured at the 15-ohm
output terminals.
Noise Level.-In the amplifier
tested, the measured noise level
was 85 db below maximum output.
The noise in this amplifier was,
however, almost entirely 50 c /s
hum, caused by coupling between
the mains and output trans
By more careful ar
formers.
rangement of these components it
appeared that the noise level
could be reduced to better than
100 db below maximum output.
If desired, the power output of
the amplifier may be increased
beyond 15 watts by the use of
several pairs of output valves in
parallel push-pull. The output
transformer, power supply and
bias arrangements, and the feed
back resistor R25 will require to
be modified. Amplifiers of this
design with power outputs up to
70 watts have been produced.
Listening tests carried out in
conjunction with a wide-range
loudspeaker system have fully

'<:81111 1 1 1 111 111 1 1111

o

0
o

0
0

0
0

0
0

FREQUENCY IN CYCLES PER SECOND

Fig. 7. Frequency response (without feedback) of 20 watt output trans

Generator resistance 2,5000 load
former described in appendix.
resistance 1 .70. Measured with 5V r.m.S. on primary. At higher
excitations the bass response improves progressively up to saturation.

supported the measured perform

ance. No distortion can be de
tected, even when the amplifier is
reproducing organ music includ
ing pedal notes of the 20 c/s order,
which reach the threshold of
maximum output. Transients are
reproduced with extreme fidelity;
tests using a direct microphone
circuit with noises such as jingling
keys reveal extraordinary realism.
The amplifier can be described
as virtually perfect for sound
reproducing channels of the high
est fidelity. It provides an ideal
amplifier for sound-recording pur
" distortionless "
where
poses,
amplification and low noise level
are of prime importance.

APPENDIX.
Output Transformer.
Specification.

Primary load impedance

= 10,000 ohms c. t.
Secondary load impedance
= 1. 7 ohms per section.
= 76 : I.
Turns ratio
Primary inductance= IOO H (min .)
Leakage inductance= 30 mH (max.)
Windin Data.

Core: Ilin stack of Pattern No.

28A "Super Sileor" laminations
(:\fagnetic and Electrical Alloys,
Burnbank, Hamilton, Lanarks).
The winding consists of two
identical interleaved coils, each Iin
wide, wound on I!in x I!in paxolin
formers. On each former is wound:
5 primary sections each consisting
of 5 layers (88 turns per layer)
of 30 s.w.g. enamelled copper wire
interleaved with 2 mil. paper, alter
nating with 4 secondary sections,
each consisting of 2 layers (29 turns
per layer) of 19 s.w.g. enam. copper
wire, interleaved with 2 mil. paper.
Each section is insulated from its
neighbours by 3 layers of 5 mil.
Empire tape. All connections are
brought ont on one side of the wind
ing, but the primary sections may be
connected in series when winding,
only two primary connections per
coil being brought out. *
Measured Performance.

Primary inductance = 100 H.

(measured at 50 cls with 5V r.m.s.
on primary, equivalent to 2.5 mW)
Leakage inductance = 22 mHo
(measured at 1,000 c/s)
250 ohms.
Primary resistance
=

(a) Input waveform, 300 c/s. (b) Output waveform with feedback and
slight overload. (c) Output waveform with feedback but output voltage
15% below maximum.
13

* Secondary connections for dtfferent

ratios are given in the Table on p.17.

The Williamson Amplifier

The New Version

Design Data: Modifications: Further Notes

INCE the publication in the

April and May, 1947, issues
of Wireless World of an am
plifier design suitable for high
quality reproduction of sound,
correspondence has revealed that
a more complete explanation of
some of the features of the design,
with the addition of some informa
tion about construction, would be
The correspondence
of interest.
also shows that considerable de
mand exists for a pre-amplifier
unit to enable the amplifier to be
used in conjunction with gramo
p hone pickups and microphones of
l ow output. In the present article
it is proposed to deal with the

Fig. I.

Circuit diagram of complete amplifier.

IMO
! watt 20%
33,0000 1 watt 20%
47,0000 1 watt 20%
4700
! watt 10%
22,0000 1 watt 5//0
(or matched)
Rs
22,0000 1 watt 20%
Ra, Rg 0.47MO ! watt 20%
3900
! watt 10%
RIO
Ru,RIS47,0000 2 watt 5%
(or matched)

RI
&2
R3
R4
R6, R7

subsequent
in
and
amplifier,
articles to present the design of
auxiliary equipment to form a
domestic sound-reproducing in
stallation.
The list of
Circuit Diagram.
component values are printed
again. These differ in minor detail
from the originals. In the circuit
previously printed a potentio
meter, RI2, was provided in the
penultimate stage to enable the
signal to be balanced. Due to the
unbypassed
common
of
use
cathode resistors for the push-pull
stages, the amplifier is largely
self-balancing to signal, and it is
permissible to dispense with this

adjustment. Accordingly, revised

values and tolerances are shown
for resistors R5, Rp Rll and R".
A transitional phase-shift net
work consisting of Rz and ClO'
which was previously recom
mended as a temporary measure,
has been added as a permanent
feature to increase the margin of
stability at high frequencies. This
will be discussed later when the
stability of the amplifier is con
sidered.
Finally, an indirectly - heated
rectifier has been substituted as
this prevents a damaging voltage
the amplifier is
surge when
switched on. No suitable type was

Voltages underlined are peak signal voltages at IS watts output.

R14, RID O.IMO

RIo' R20 1,0000
RI6, RIS1000
RI7, R2I1000

! watt 10%
! watt 20%
1 watt 20%
2 watt wirewound
variable
1500
R22
3 watt 20%
! watt 20%
R2 3, R24 1000
R20
1,200 v' speech coil impedance
t watt (see table)
R26
! watt 20%
4,7000
500V wkg.
Cl' C2, Co, Cs 8J.LF
0.05J.LF 350V wkg.
C3, C4
14

0.25J.LF 350V wkg.

C6, C7
600V wkg.
8J.LF
C9
200pF 350V wkg.
CJO
30H at 20mA
CHI
lOH at 150mA
CH2
Power transformer
T
Secondary 4250-425V 150 mA, 5V, aA,
6.3V 4A, centretapped
Vj, V2 2xL63 or 6J5, 6SN7 or B65
do.
do.
V3, V4
Yo, V6 KT66 V7 Cossor 53KU, 5V4

The Williamson Amplifier

0
Z

I0

/
I
o I
.
/

-- . ....

VI--..
/

1/
1:"-

h"

--- AMPLlF IER WITHOUT FEEDBACK

AMPLIFIER WITH FEEDBACK

"-.

-20 /
0

/'
f:O
0

1-'-

... --

......-

I .....

3
2
I
0

Fig.

2.

FREQU[iCY

(cls)

Loop gain and phase-shift characteristics of the amplifier.

C'JTPUT

available when the circuit was

originally published.
A list of
alternative valve types is also
shown.

MAlt:,
INPUT

Amplitude
and
Phase I fre
quency Response. A curve show

ing the transmission and loop

gain of the amplifier at frequencies
between 1 cl s and 1 Mc I s is shown
in Fig. 2. Although only the sec
tion between IQ cl s and 20,000 cl s
is useful for sound reproduction,
the curves outside this range are
included as they may be of in
terest to those who may wish to
use the amplifier for other pur
poses. They may also serve to
emphasize that, in a feedback
amplifier, the response must be
carefully controlled at frequencies
very remote from the useful range
if stability is to be achieved.
General

Constructional

Data.

The layout of the amplifier is not

critical, provided that a few
simple precautions are observed.
Many different arrangements have
been used satisfactorily to suit
differing circumstances.
An ex
cellent plan is to construct the
power supply and the amplifier on
separate chassis, as this gives
greater flexibility in accommo
dating the equipment in a cabinet.
The f o l l o w i n g precautions
should be observed:I . The output transformer core
should be positioned at right
angles to the cores of the mains
transformer and the main smooth
ing choke.
2. The output transformer and
loudspeaker leads should be kept
at a reasonable distance from the
input leads, which should be
screened. As the response curve

Fig. 3. Suggested
layout of principal
components of com
bined amplifier and
power pack.
shows, the amplifier has consider
able gain at low radio frequencies,
and care is necessary to avoid
oscillation.
3. Signal wires, especially grid
leads, should be kept as short as
possible, and the stopper resistors
associated with the output stage
must be mounted on the valve
holder tags, and not on grol.:p
panels.
4. A
bus-bar
earth
return
formed by a piece of 12 or 14
s. w.g. tinned copper wire, con
nected to the chassis at the input
end, is greatly to be preferred to
the use of the chassis as an earth
return.
and
paper
5. Electrolytic
capacitors should be kept away
from sources of heat, such as the
output and rectifier valves.
Figs. 3 and 4 show the positions
of the major components in two
alternative layouts which have
been used successfully.
Initial
Adjustments.
Before

the amplifier is put into service

there are a few adjustments which
require to be made. These con
cern the balancing of the standing
currents in the output stage, and
(with the original circuit) balanc
ing of the signal currents in the
push-pull stages.
Accurate balance of the stand
ing currents in the output stage
is essential, as the low-frequency
characteristics of the output trans
former deteriorate rapidly with
d.c. magnetization.
The proce
dure to be adopted for static and
signal balancing is as follows:-

Static Balancing.
(a) Connect a suitable milli
ammeter in the lead to the
centre tap of the output trans
former primary.
(b) Set the total current to
12 smA by means of R'l'
(c) Connect a moving-coil
voltmeter
( 0-10 V
approx.)
across the whole of the output

The Williamson Amplifier

CONNECTING LINK

Fig. 4.

Layout when using separate power pack.

transformer primary and adjust

Ra until the reading is zero, in

dicating balance.
Rand0m
fluctuations of this instrument
may be noticed. These are due
to mains and valve fluctuations
and should be disregarded.

Signal Balancing.

(a) Connect
the
low-impedance winding of a small out
put transformer in the lead to
the centre tap of the output
transformer. Connect a detector
(headphones or a cathode-ray
oscillograph if available) to the
other winding, earthing one
side for safety.
(b) Connect a resistive load
in place of the loudspeaker.
(c) Apply a signal at a fre
quency of about 400 c / s to the
amplifier input to give an out
put voltage about half maxi
mum.
(d) Adjust R" for minimum
output in the detector.

The Output Transformer. As

stated previously,
the output
transformer is the most critical
component in the amplifier and
satisfactory performance will not
be obtained with a component
differing substantially from the
specification .
The effect of de
creasing the primary inductance
will be to produce instability at
low frequencies, which can be
cured only by altering the time
constants of the other coupling
circuits,
or by decreasing the
amount of feedback . At high fre
quencies the situation is more
complex,
as
there
are
more
variables.
The leakage induc
tance, the self-capacitance of the
windings, the capacitance between
windings and the distribution of
these parameters determine the

transmission of the component at

high frequencies, and great varia
tions are possible.
In the output transformer speci
fied, the only parameter which is
likely to vary appreciably is the
inductance of the primary at low
signal levels, due to the use of
core material with a low initial
permeability,
or
to
careless
assembly of the core. The high
frequency characteristics are not
dependent on the core material to
a substantial degree .
They are
dependent only on the geometry of
construction, and to some extent
upon the dielectric properties of
the insulants used, and are there
fore reproducible with a high
degree of accuracy .
Comments are frequently ex
pressed about the size of the out
It is true that
put transformer.
it is considerably larger than the
transformers which are usually
fitted to I5-watt amplifiers .
The
fact that the peak flux density of
7 , 250 gauss for maximum output
at 20 c / s lies on the upper safe
limit for low distortion is sufficient
comment on current practice.
Some confusion arose regarding
the method of connection of the
transformer secondary windings to
match
loads
of
various
im
pedances, whilst utilizing all the
secondary sections.
The correct
p ri mar y
load
impedance
is
10,000 0 and as the turns ratio in
the original design is 76 : I the im
pedance of each secondary section
is 10,000 0 / 762 or 1 . 7 0 .
When
secondary sections are connected
in parallel, the turns ratio, and
hence the impedance ratio, re
mains unchanged.
If now two
secondary sections,
or sets of
paralleled sections, are connected
in series the turns ratio is halved,

16

and the secondary impedance.

being proportional to the square
of
the
turns
ratio,
becomes
1 . 7 x 2 2 = 6. 8 0 . Similarly if three
sections are connected in series the
impedance
becomes
I . 7 x 32 =
Thus the a v a i l a b l e
15.3 0.
secondary impedances, keeping a
10,000 0 primary load impedance,
are 1 . 7 , 6.8, 1 5 3 , 27, 4 2 . 5 , 6 1 ,
8 3 and 109 O . The connections to
obtain these values are shown in
the table.
Should it be necessary, in an
emergency, to match loads of
other impedances to the ampli
fier, it is permissible to reduce the
primary load impedance to 6,000 n
giving another series of secondary
impedances, namely I , 4, 9, 16,
25, 36, 49 and 64 n . Under these
conditions the power output will
be increased slightly and the dis
tortion will be doubled .
The
value of the feedback resistor R,.
must remain unaltered, as the
turns ratio is unchanged .
The
values of R'5 are given in the
table.
Winding data for an output
transformer to match loads in the
region of 3 . 5 n are given in the
Appendix and the connections
and other data are included in the
lower section of the table.
The two outer layers of the
output transformer primary should
normally be connected together to
form the centre tap, the inner sec
tions of the winding being taken
to the valve anodes.
This gives
the mlIllmum external electric
field.

Stability with Negative Feed

bac k . -Much has been written
about the stability of amplifiers
under conditions of negative feed
back, and the criteria for stability
are now widely appreciated. The
article by " Cathode Ray " in the
May,
1949,
issue,
states
the
matter simply and with character
istic clarity.
Continuous oscillation will occur
in a feedback amplifier if the loop
gain-that is the transmission of
the amplifier and the feedback
network-is greater than unity at
any point where the phase shift
of the amplifier has reached 1800
It is also possible for an amplifier
to be unstable in the absence of
continuous oscillation if these con
ditions should occur in a transient
manner at a critical signal level.
This latter condition is particu
larly likely to occur in badly de-

The Williamson Amplifier

signed amplifiers with iron-cored
components, where the inductance
and, therefore, the time constant
controlling the phase and ampli
tude characteristics of one or more
stages may increase by as much as
a factor of five between zero and
maximum signal levels.
If this
variable time constant is shorter
than those of the fixed coupling
circuits, an increase in its value
due to a high signal level may be
sufficient to render the system un
stable.
In order to avoid this
condition the fixed time constants
must be made much longer than
that of the variable stage. This
condition would lead to undesir
ably large interstage couplings if
good low-frequency response were
required . Alternatively, the var
iable time constant must be
chosen in relation to the fixed
time constants, such that its mini
mum value is sufficiently longer
than the fixed values to produce
stability. An increase in its value
then serves only to increase the
stability margin. This method is
used in the amplifier under dis
cussion .
To ensure a wide margin of
stability, whilst at the same time
preserving the high loop gain
necessary to reduce the effect of

transformer
distortion
at
fre
quencies of the order of 10-20 c / s,
would require a transformer with
a very large initial primary induc
tance. This would necessarily be
expensive, and a compromise
must be drawn between the three
factors.
Because of this, the
margin of stability must be kept
to the lowest practicable value.
When the amplifier is repro
duced, the " spread " in tolerance
of components will normally be
such that changes in character
istics due to departure from the
nominal value of one component
will be balanced by opposite
changes produced by departure in
another
component,
and
the
amplifier as a whole is likely to
have characteristics close to the
average.
Individual amplifiers
may,
however,
have
charac
teristics which differ substan
tially from the average,
due
to an upward or downward
trend in the changes produced by
component deviations.
If the
trend is in a direction such that
the loop gain is reduced, no in
stability will result, the only effect
being a slight degrading of the
performance .
If, on the other
hand, the loop gain is increased
by an amount greater than the

OUTPUT TRANSFORMERS.

No. of secondary
groups of sections
in series

--

---

Original
Output
Transformer

10,000/1. 7 n

I
Minimum second ary
impedance
permissible (ohms)1
Feedback resistor
R25 (ohms)
Turns ratio

Alternative
Output
Transformer
(See Appendix)
10,000/ 3.60

Correct secondary
impedance (ohms)

Coc",,,hooond,,,,
impedance (ohms)
Feedback resistor
R25 (ohms)
Turns ratio

i
.

U-11 -Jq

U-

-Jl

-l

::--.-

_'-':

1.7

6.8

15.3

27

42.5

61

83

109

16

25

36

49

64

3,300

4,700

6,800

8,200

10,000

1 1 ,000

12,000

15.2

12.6

10.8

9.5

176

230

76

11

Primary Inductance
Assuming that the amplifier is,
or has been rendered, stable with
the feedback disconnected, the
next step should be to check the
phase and amplitude character
istics at low frequencies. It is not
practicable to make direct mea
surements of these characteristics
without very special equipment,
as inspection of Fig. 2 will show
that the interesting region lies

TABLE OF CONNECTIONS.

J f J

Connections

margin of stability, oscillation will

occur.
It should be emphasized
that this will happen only very
rarely, and when it does the
remedy is obviously to reduce the
loop gain to its correct value.
To assist the unfortunate few
who experience instability, the
following procedure is recom
mended .
If oscillation should
occur at a low frequency (about
2 c / s) the first step should be to
disconnect the feedback resistor
If the oscillation continues
R...
the decoupling circuits should be
checked and any faulty compon
ents
replaced.
The
amplifier
should also be examined to ensure
that it is operating correctly
balanced in push-pull, and not in
an unbalanced manner due to the
failure of some component.

38

25.4

19

3.6

14.4

32.5

57.5

2,200

4,700

6,800

9,000

52.5

26.25

17.5

13

17

90

130

1 1 ,500

13,500

16,000

18,000

10.5

8.75

7.5

6.5

The Williamson Amplifier

below
ID c l s.
I t is therefore
necessary to arrive at the desired
result by indirect means, namely
by measurement of the component
parameters which determine the
characteristics.
The parameter
which is most likely to show a
large deviation from specification
is the initial primary inductance
of the output transformer , since
the quality of the core material is
not easy to control accurately, and
careless assembly of the core may
cause considerable variations in its
permeability.
The initial primary inductance
should be checked by connecting
the primary winding across the
5-V, 50-c / s rectifier heater wind
ing of the mains transformer and
measuring the current in it. The
secondary windings should be on
open circuit . The current, which
can just be read on the 10 mA
a . c . range of a Model 7 Avometer,
should be 1 50 }lA or lower.
The
component should be rejected if
the current exceeds 200 }lA.
If the output transformer is
satisfactory the values of the other
components should be checked,
particular attention being paid to
the coupling components. Should
the time constants of the coup
lings, that is their RC product, be
higher than the nominal values by
more than 20 per cent, the resis
tors should be adj usted to give
the correct value.
The trouble will probably have
revealed itself by this time, but,
if upon reconnecting R'5 the oscil
lation is still present, it is very
likely to be due to the use of
valves with mutual conductances
higher than average, and it is
legitimate to increase the value of
R'5 to reduce the loop gain .
If
instruments
are
available,
the
loop gain may be measured by
disconnecting
R'5
from
the
cathode of V I and reconnecting it
via a 470 D 10 per cent resistor to
chassis.
The voltage gain, mea
sured from the input grid to the
junction of R'5 and the 470 D re
sistor, should be 10 at frequencies
between
30 c / s
and
IO kc / s .
Care must be taken not to over
load the amplifier when this mea
surement is being made.
The adjustment of the loop gain
to its correct value at medium
frequencies should
render
the
amplifier
stable
at
high
fre
quencies.
It is unlikely that the
phase characteristic at high fre-

quencies of individual amplifiers

will deviate appreciably from nor
mal unless the layout is very poor
or the transformer is not to speci
fication.

Capacitive Loads
The
amplifier
is
absolutely
stable at high frequencies with a
resistive or inductive load, but it
is possible for oscillation to occur
when the load impedance is capa
citive at very high frequencies,
for example, when a long cable is
used to connect the amplifier and
loudspeaker.
To avoid this pos
sibility, and to give an increased
margin of stability, a transitional
phase-shift network consisting of
R,. and C l . in conjunction with
the output resistance of V l' has
been included in the circuit. This
has the effect of reducing the loop
gain at frequencies from 20 kc I s
upwards without affecting the
phase shift in the critical region .
The use of a phase advance net
work consisting of a capacitor
shunting R'5 has been advocated
as a means of stabilizing this
amplifier.
The effect of such a
network is to increase the loop
gain at high frequencies, at the
same time reducing the amount of
phase lag.
It is sometimes pos
sible by this means to steer the
phase curve away from the 1800
point as the loop gain is passing
through unity, thus increasing the
margin of stability .
The connection of a capacitor
across R'5 ' however, will not
stabilize this amplifier if it has
been const'ructed to specification,
although it may produce improve
ment if oscillation is due to some
large departure from specification,
such as the U5e of an output trans
former with completely different
high - frequency
characteristics.
The writer has no information
about this.
The use of separate RC bias
impedances for the output valves
has also been suggested.
This
procedure is not endorsed by the
writer, as there are numerous dis
advantages in its use and no re
deeming features whatsoever.
If
the time constant of the bias net
work is made sufficiently long to
ensure that the low-frequency per
formance of the amplifier is un
impaired, the phase shift of the
bias network will have its maxi
mum at or near the lower critical
frequency
and
may
provoke
18

oscillation . If, o n the other hand,

it is made sufficiently short to
avoid this , the ability of the
amplifier
to
handle
low
fre
quencies will be impaired.
The
use of separate bias impedances
destroys the self-balancing pro
perties of the amplifier, and if two
dissimilar valves are used in the
output stage " motor boating " is
likely, due to the presence of sig
nal in the h .t. line. The perform
ance of the output transformer
may be seriously affected by the
out-of-balance current caused by
valves whose anode currents lie
within the manufacturer ' s toler
ance limits. Finally, there can be
little justification of this modifica
tion on economic grounds, as the
costs are roughly similar. Indeed,
if the question of replacement due
to failure is considered, the com
mon bias arrangement shows a
definite saving.
It is to be hoped that these re
marks on stability will not have
the effect of frightening those who
already possess amplifiers of this
type or are contemplating acquir
ing them .
Their purpose is to
help the occasional " outer limit "
case where instability is experi
enced, but if they serve to impress
upon the reader that negative feed
back amplifiers are designed as
an integral unit, and that any
modifications , however insignifi
cant they may appear, may seri
ously affect the performance or
stability, a useful purpose will
have been accomplished.
Such
modifications should be attempted
only by those who are confident
that they know what they are do
ing, and who have access to mea
suring equipment to verify results.

APP E N D I X
Output

Transformer with
Secondaries

3.6-ohm

Winding Data

Core : I !in. stack of 28A Super

Silcor laminations.
(Magnetic and

Electrical Alloys, Burnbank, Ham

ilton, Lanarks.). The winding con
sists of two identical interleaved
coils each I in. wide on paxolin
formers I tin. X I iin . inside dimen
sions.
On each former is wound
5 primary sections, each con
sisting of 440 turns (5 layers, 88
turns per layer) of 30 s.w.g.
enamelled copper wire interleaved
with 2 mil. paper, alternating with
4 secondary sections, each con-

The WilIiamson Amplifier

sisting of 84 turns (2 layers, 42

turns per layer) of 22 s.w.g.
enamelled copper wire interleaved
with 2 mil. paper.
Each section is insulated from its

neighbours by 3 layers of 5 mil.

Empire tape.
All connections are
brought out on one side of the wind
ing, but the primary sections may be
connected in series when winding,

two primary connections

bobbin being brought out.
to be assembled on core
bobbin reversed, and with
cheeks and centre spacer.

only per
\Vin<lings
with the
insulating

Why the
WILLIAMSON
AMPLIFIER
should eDlploy
PARTRIDGE
TransforDlers

HE widest possible audio range-the lowest possible distor

tion and an output of 20 watts . . . these critical demands of the designer of
this now famous Amplifier implied the finest that technical skill and craftsmanship
could provide for every component.
Williamson
chokes.

Amplifier in 1947

Little wonder that from the inception of the

Partridge

have specialised

in

the transformers and

The all important output transformer was the special care of Partridge and

this " Williamson specification " component is now available for a varied
impedance.

range of

CA model is also available for American 807 tubes, see the modified

circuit in "Audio Engineering," November 1949.)

All secondary windings are brought

out as eight separate sections of equal impedance.

1 . 7 ohm, 3 . 6 ohm and 7 . 5 ohm sections ;

Stock types comprise 0.95 ohm,

this latter giving a 500 ohm secondary

The Partridge " Williamson " Output Transformer

is acknowledged the most efficient of its type.

for American requirements .

Available
U N POTTED

or

POTTED

IMMEDIATE

Technical data sheets with fullest details

(complete with alternative mountings) are
available on request. Also available, complete
catalogue of the Partridge range including the
mains components for this and other amplifiers.

(Style VDNj436B)

(Style VDNj436B)

PMliIPOGIJ

DELIVERY can be made,

and these components are ready for shipment

to all parts of the world.
ROEBUCK ROAD

KIN GSTON BY-PASS

TRANSFORMERS LTD
TOLWORTH

19

SURREY

Elm bridge 6737(8

The WiIliamson Amplifier

Design of Tone Controls and

A uxiliary Gramophone Circuits

M

OST power amplifiers in

tended for sound repro
duction are designed to
have a uniform response to fre
quencies within the audible range,
and it is the aim of designers of
pickups, microphones and loud
speakers to give similar character
istics to their products . This re
presents an attempt to fulfil one
of the conditions for the creation
of a perfect replica of the original
sound and provides a common
basis for the design of individual
units, which, when connected to
gether, will provide a complete
channel with a uniform gain /
frequency characteristic .
Considerations of an engineer
ing nature sometimes make it de
sirable, and even essential, to
depart from this ideal of a uni
form response in certain sections
of equipment,
and quite fre
quently the use of inferior equip
ment or long and unsuitable trans
mission lines leads to an undesir
able departure from uniformity .
In cases like this , other " equal
izer " units have to be inserted in
the channel to provide character
istics which are the inverse of
those of the offending section, so
remedying the defect.
When listening conditions de
part from the ideal-and this, un
fortunately, happens frequently
since most rooms are unsuitable
auditoria for the reproduction of
orchestral music at realistic in
tensities-it is sometimes bene
ficial to modify the frequency re
sponse characteristic of the equip
ment in an attempt to compensate
for the more obvious defects in the
The
word
acoustics .
room
" attempt " is used advisedly,
since only very complex equaliza
tion could ever hope to provide
accurate compensation for room
acoustics.
This question of the
frequency compensation which is
desirable when conditions depart
from the ideal is a very thorny
and subjective one. It provokes
much
heated,
dogmatic ,
and
usually very unscientific discus
sion, and is beyond the scope of

source, and are capable of being

ameliorated .
In addition, fixed
compensation must be provided
for deviations from a uniform re
sponse which are deliberately in
troduced in gramophone records.
The degree
of complication
which is worthwhile in such a
unit must be considered.
In
theory , it is possible to compen
sate precisely for deficiencies in
the
amplitude I frequency
and
phase / frequency response charae-

the present article. It must suffice

to say that the matter is one in
which the individual must exer
cise his own judgment and act
accordingly.
In order that he may have
scope to do this, a pre-amplifier
designed to be used in conjunction
with gramophone recordings and
radio transmissions should there
fore be capable of providing vari
able compensation for such de
fects as are likely to occur in the
INPUT

R I SE

r-----__J TREBLE
FALL

VALVE
GRID

MAX

MIN.

TREBLE

FALL
RISE

Fig. 5. Basic frequency compensation circuit. Typical

values (for use after an EF37, triode-connected) are :
O, 250kO, log ; Rf h IookO ; R42, 6.8kO ; R4,3,
IokO ; 4' IookO linear. C20, 1 50pF max. ; Cn,
o.oIf'F, C22 0.o5f'F ; C2a, I ooopF.

+ 20

.D

;c

+ ID

- INCREASE C zz

I I

R40 M IN.

'"
'"

;::

>

\,1

5 2 FA L L
R 40 MA

i I I'-.. A

5 2 RISE
R40 MAX

...--

"'- ......

I
.....
-

,./

......

ICIRA,S,E C 2 1
0.

0
o

f REQUENCY

RISE

V11 R44
l MAX.
R44 MIN.

5 3 FAL
R44 MAX.1

20

B/

1 1 I 11

Fig. 6.

I 1 11 -

DECRE

_I 1

-ID

:
I

"-

cRillEC u"

/s)

Response curves of circuit of Fig. 5.

The WiIliamson Amplifier

teristics, but the equipment to do
this is complicated and expensive.
When a considerable portion of
the channel is outside the control
of the listener, as is the case
records
or
when
reproducing
broadcast transmissions, he has
no means, apart from the sensi
tivity and training of his ears, of
determining the defects which
have occurred in that portion .
Since it is impossible to determine
the nature and amount of phase
distortion by listening to a trans
mission, and since it is not usual
for much attention to be paid to
this form of distortion at the re
cording or transmitting end, there
would seem to be little justifica
tion for the inclusion of phase
correcting networks in domestic
equipment.
In the case of a
sound reproducing system which
is completely under the control of
the user, particularly if stereo
phonic, phase distortion should
not be allowed to occur if the
finest possible quality is to be ob
tained. This is especially true at
low frequencies, where consider
able time delays are involved .
Low
phase distortion is best
achieved by designing a system
with a bandwidth considerably
greater than the audible range,
but where this is not possible com
pensation may be provided .
Consideration o f the causes of
frequency distortion leads to the
conclusion that it is normal for the
levels at the ends of the spectrum
to be accentuated or attenuated
progressively with respect to the
level at middle frequencies and a
form of compensation to correct
this fulfils most requirements. It
is not possible to lay down hard
and fast rules about the amount
of compensation necessary, but
rates of attenuation or accentua
tion greater than 6 db / octave are
not usually required.
As it is often desirable to change
the amount of compensation dur
ing a programme without calling
attention to the fact, methods
which give continuous control
over the response are to be pre
ferred to switched systems, unless
the latter are graded in very fine
steps.
The use of inductors to provide
gai n / frequency compensation is
to be deprecated as, apart from
possible troubles due to resonance
effects and non-linearity, they are
very liable to pick up hum from

CURVE

t;

:r
<Il

A
B
C

LOOP GAIN

'

90

20
100

'"

<>
90

-----

FREQUENCY

Fig. 8.

Fig. 7.

Basic filter circuit.

stray alternating magnetic fields,

especially if they are air-cored .
Metal- or dust-cored toroids are
less troublesome in this respect,
but are expensive and not readily
obtainable .
Frequency Compensation.--Fig.
5 shows a simple compensation
circuit which will accomplish bass
and
treble
accentuation
and
attenuation without the use of in
ductors .
The controls consist of
two potentiometers, each asso
ciated with a change over switch.
Consider the low frequency con
When R is
trols R and S2 '
fully anticlockwise (minimum re
sistance)
the response to fre
quencies below 1 ,000 C / s is uni
form .
If the switch S2 is set to
" rise , " as R is rotated clock
wise,
the
amplitude / frequency
characteristic will rise at low fre
quencies to the maximum shown
at A in Fig. 6.
If S2 is set to
" fall " and R rotated clockwise
from the minimum position, pro
gressive low-frequency attenua
tion will be introduced, up to the
maximum shown at B. In a simi
lar manner, by the use of RH and
S3 the high-frequency response is
continuously variable from a level
response to the extremes shown at
C and D with the values given .
The curves may be shifted bodily
along the
horizontal
axis by
modifying the capacitance values
as shown by the arrows in Fig. 6 .
21

Characteristics of circuit
of Fig. 7.

The attenuation introduced by

the network when controls are at
the level position is 24 db, and the
network
must,
of course , be
introduced into the system at a
signal level such that the valve
feeding is not overloaded.
Low-Pass Filter .-The majority
of medium-wave broadcast trans
missions, when reproduced with
wide-range equipment, exhibit a
most objectionable form of non
This takes the
linear distortion.
form of a rattle or buzz often
accompanying transient sounds
such as pianoforte music.
This
type of distortion is commonly
caused by minor discontinuities in
the transfer characteristic and is
frequently associated with Class
" B " amplifiers.
Recording and processing de
fects, record wear and imperfect
tracing by the pickup produce a
similar type of distortion from
gramophone records.
The most offensive frequency
components
of
the
rattle
or
buzz are generally present at
the extreme upper end of the
audible
spectrum,
and spread
downwards as the severity of the
effect increases.
Fortunately, the
concentration of this type of dis
tortion into the extreme upper end
of the spectrum makes it possible
to effect considerable improve
ment by removing or reducing the
energy in the signal at these fre
quencies.
A low-pass filter with
a cut-off frequency variable be
tween the limits of 5 and 13 kc / s
and a fairly high rate of attenua
tion above the cut-off frequency
is a great asset in securing the best
possible aural result from indiffer
ent transmissions or recordings.
Although it is practicable to
provide a filter with a continu-

The Williamson Amplifier

the response rises to a fraction of
its value below resonance and then
falls off due to the attenua
tion produced by the capacitor C ,
The addition o f a further R-C
attenuating network external to
the circuit will produce a fre
quency response characteristic as

FREQUENCY

Fig. 9. Modification of basic

filter characteristic produced by
additional phase shift.
ously variable cut-off frequency,
the expense and complication are
not normally justified and
a
switched selection of frequencies is
satisfactory .
To attain the high
attenuation rates necessary to se
cure satisfactory results a norma}
resonant-section
type
of
filter
could be used, but this carries
with it the disadvanta.ges asso
ciated with the use of inductors.
An alternative type of filter
using only resistive and capacitive
elements based on the parallel-T
network' is capable of giving very
satisfactory results.
Briefly, the
principle of this filter is as fol
lows. In Fig. 7 is shown an ampli
fier feeding a parallel-T null net
work, the output from the net
work being fed back to the input
of the amplifier.
Such a system
has amplitude and phase charac
teristics of the general shape
shown in Fig. 8. By altering the
loop gain of the amplifier, it is
possible to produce a resonance
characteristic of any desired de
gree of sharpness.
If now a lagging phase shift is
introduced into the amplifier, for
example, by connecting the capa
citor C from grid to earth, it will
be seen that the total phase shift
due to network and amplifier j ust
below resonance will be greater

than 90
and the feedback volt
age will have a positive compon
ent, whilst above resonance a
greater negative component will
exist. The effect of this is to un
balance the amplitude character
istic as shown in Fig. 9.
A rise
in response occurs just before the
resonance frequency due to the
positive component of feedback,
and above the resonant frequency
- , RC Filter Circuits."
Journal 0/ the Acoustical Society 0/
America.
VoL 16, No. 4, pp. 275-279
April, 1945

' Thiessen, G. J.

FREQUENCY

Fig. 10. Final low-pass charac

teristic resulting from addition of
external R-C attenuator.
shown in Fig. 10. The similarity
of this curve to the response of a
resonant element L-C filter will
readily be appreciated. There is
a practical limit to the rate of
attenuation which can be achieved
with a single stage, since the
attenuation rate and the level to
which the response rises above the
frequency of maximum attenua
tion are interrelated . Thus a high
rate of attenuation is achieved
with simplicity only at the expense
of a low ratio of response below
cut-off to peak response above
cut-off,
However,
a
rate
of
attenuation of 40 db / octave can
be obtained from one stage with
a minimum attenuation above
cut-off of nearly 30 db, which is
quite satisfactory .
By cascading
a number of these filter stages any
desired attenuation characteristics
may be achieved, and high-pass
filters may be similarly formed by
the addition of leading phase shift
to the amplifier.
A filter designed on these lines,
with five switched positions giv
ing nominal cut-off frequencies of
57,
IO and 13 kc / s and a
" linear " position is incorporated
in the final circuit, The perform
ance is shown in Fig, I I .
Gramophone Pre-amplifier.
The arrangements just described
are generally all that is necessary
to compensate for defects in radio
transmissions. For record repro
duction, however , additional fixed
compensation is required .
The
nature of this compensation will
depend on the recording charac22

teristic and the type o f pickup

used.
For reasons now too well known
to require repetition, lateral disc
recordings are usually cut with a
groove amplitude which is propor
tional to signal below some arbi
trarily selected frequency in the
300-400 c / s region and with a
lateral groove velocity which is
proportional to signal above this
frequency.
To improve signal /
noise ratio it is now common prac
tice to increase the level recorded
at high frequencies,
This is par
ticularly effective, since the noise
energy per cycle increases with
frequency due to the structure of
the record materiaL In Fig. 12 is
shown the recording characteristic
used by Decca. The K M , I , char
acteristic does not differ substan
tially at low frequencies but the
rise above 3 , 000 c / s is absent. It
is proposed to use the Decca char
acteristic as a basis for design .
When playing E , M , I , recordings,
one fixed capacitor in the pre
amplifiers to be described later may
be switched out of circuit, giving a
level response.
Alternatively the
gramophone pre-amplifier may be
left unchanged and correction pro
vided by means of the variable
treble control in the tone compen
sation unit. This, when C is set
to IOo pF and R . . (Fig. 5) ad
vanced by one quarter of maxi
mum rotation, gives almost per
fect correction,
The maj ority of pickups, with
the
exception
of
piezoelectric
types , give an electrical output
which is proportional to the lateral
The out
velocity of the stylus,
put of such a pickup when play
ing a Decca recording will be of
the form shown in Fig . 1 2 , with
ordinates of voltage instead of
velocity. A pre-amplifier suitable
for such a pickup should have a
frequency characteristic which is
the inverse of this.
Some desirable properties of a
pickup pre-amplifier are : I.
Low noise leveL
2. Low distortion at signal
levels likely to be encountered
with pickups in common use.
3. Sharp attenuation below
20 c / s
to
suppress
turntable
rumble, etc .
4, Provision for varying the
gain electrically.
Noise Level.-The attainment
of a low noise level in high-quality
sound systems is of such vital im-

The Williamson Amplifier

portance that a few remarks of
a general nature will not be out
of place at this juncture.
It is an unfortunate fact that
improvements in microphones and
pickups in the direction of wider
frequency range <l.nd absence of
other forms of distortion are
almost invariably achieved at the
expense of the electrical output.
This does not necessarily mean
that the efficiency of the trans
ducer is reduced by the other im
provements, but merely that it re
moves
less
energy
from
the
acoustical field or from the record
groove which actuates it, causing
less disturbance of this field , or
less wear of the record groove.
There is, however, a limit to
this tendency set by the noise
generated by thermal agitation in
the transducer and its auxiliaries
and by the noise produced in the
first valve of the amplifier. It is
desirable in a wide-range, high
quality sound system to attempt
to maintain a peak signal / noise
ratio of at least 70 db.
This
figure represents the best that can
be achieved with a direct cellulose
disc recording when everything is
" just right , " and it is to be ex
pected that the standards of com
mercial disc recordings will ap
proach this level when improved
techniques are combined with new
disc materials.
A well-designed
magnetic tape recorder will give
a signal / noise ratio of 70-80 db,
and the increasing use of this type
of equipment will doubtless give
impetus to the research necessary
for the achievement of similar
standards in other forms of re
cording.
With a signal / n oise
ratio of 70 db, a sound reproduc
ing system with a frequency re-

sponse flat to 20,000 c / s operat

ing at a realistic volume level pro
duces, in the absence of a signal,
noise which is just audible as a
very gentle rustle and is com
pletely inoffensive.
Most modern microphones and
pickups
are
electromagnetic,
although there is a tendency for
microphone design to gravitate
towards carrier-operated capacitor
types.
These have problems of
their own and will not be treated
here.
Electromagnetic
micro
phones and pickups are manufac
tured with impedances ranging
from a few milliohms to several
thousand ohms, but are normally
used in conj unction with a trans-
former which raises the impedance
to a suitably high value to match
the input impedance of a valve.
For obvious reasons it is desir
able to make this secondary im
pedance as large as possible-say

"?
'-'

:;;:

- I0

F I L TER POSlTl

:z:

g;!

- 20

.0

...w

- 400

FREQUENCY

0
w
0

'"
...'"
0
u

-2

- 300

0
FREQUENCY

fig. 1 2.

I--

,\
\
r/ /'
11 V f\0

(c/s)

Measured overall response of low-pass filter, in conjunction

with pre-amplifier circuit (Fig. IS, page 26) .

f-

g - I0

o
Cl.

/'

>-

- 30

Fig. I I .

r
'I

w
<r

,/

I
I

0"......-

+ 10

.......

several megohms-since the volt

age output from the transducer
will increase simultaneously, re
ducing the gain required from the
electronic
equipment
and
the
amount of noise contributed by it.
It is not practicable, however,
to increase the secondary imped
ance much beyond 0 . 1 MO if a
flat frequency response is required
from the transformer over the
audible range.
The noise generated by thermal
agitation in a 0 . 1 MO resistor at
room temperature is about 6 p.V
for a bandwidth of 20,OOO C / s . To
this must be added the noise pro
duced in the first valve of the
By careful design and
amplifier.
construction, and by the use of a
suitable valve, the noise from all
causes, including mains hum, can
be reduced to a value equivalent
to about 3 p.V at the grid, but
under normal conditions a figure

(c/s)

Decca recording characteristic.

23

of 5 p.V is fairly representative.

The total noise may be taken as
the square root of the sum of the
squares of these values, or about
8 p. V.
To obtain a signal / noise
ratio of 70 db, then, the peak sig
nal must be 70 db above this level,
say 25 mV r . m . s . The pre-ampli
fier should have sufficient gain to
enable the main amplifier to be
fully loaded by a signal at this
level.
The choice of a valve type for
the first stage must be made care
fully.
In theory, for equal gain
the noise level in a triode stage is
lower than that produced by a
pentode, since the pentode has an
additional noise component due to

The WilIiamson Amplifier

elec tro n pa rtition between screen

and anode.
In fac t, ho wever,
there are no high-gain trio des
commerc iall y available with the
requis ite characteristics and elec
tro de struc tures for low-noise
operation. A valve des igned for
such c onditions should have a
rigidly brac ed elec tro de structure
to reduce mic rophony and a
balanc ed " double helic al " heater
cons truc tio n to minimize the alter
nating
fi eld
s urrounding
the
c athode. The Mullard EF3 7 has
this construc tio n and, co nnec ted
as a p ento de, the no is e levels men
tio ned earlier are obtainable. Be
fore co mmenc ing wo rk, the reader
who is no t familiar with the tech
nique o f high-gain amp lifier con
struc tio n s hould consult an article
3
on this subject?'
Co nsiderabl e
reduction of residual hum may
usually be o btained by demagnet
iz ing the valve.'
In o rder to
ob tain the best signal/ noise ratio,
the p rinc ip le whic h s hould b e fol
lowed, when valve noise is the
limiting fac to r in high-gain ampli
fiers , is to p ut the whole of the
available s ignal into the valve
grid, and to p ro vide any fre
quenc y comp ensatio n whic h may
be nec essary after the s ignal has
been amplified. By this method
valve noise is included in any
attenuating op erations whic h may
b e p erformed and the o verall s ig
nal no is e ratio is imp ro ved.
Low Distortion. - Numerous
methods o f p ro viding a respo nse
whic h varies with frequency are
possible and, of course, each
metho d has advantages and dis
advantages. W here the response
has to be co ntinuously variable
the method whic h gives greatest
simp lic ity
of
co ntrol
usually
triump hs .
O ther things being
equal, ho wever, methods whic h
employ s elec tive negative feed
bac k are to be preferred, as c ir
cuits of this nature generall y have
a high signal-handling c ap ac ity
and non-linear disto rtio n is kep t
to a mllllmum. In a p ic kup p re
amplifier this may be of import
anc e where p ic kups with widely
varying o utp ut levels are to be
used.
I

Baxandall, P. J., " Hum in High Gain Am

plifiers." Wireless World, VD!. 53, No.
2, pp. 57-61 , February. 1947.
.
Dickerson, A. F., " Hum ReductIon,"
Electronics, VD!. 2 1 , No. 12, p. 1 12, December, 1948.
.
.
.
Eledron!c Engzneenng,
Correspondence.
VD!. 20. No. 245, p. 235. July, 1948; No.
248, p. 339, October, 1948; No. 250, p.
406, December, 1948.

High - Pass

Characteristic.

G ramophone mo tors tend to p ro

duce vibrations whic h c an c ause
unpleasant rumbling noises in a
wide-range system. Although the
energy co ntained in the " rumble "
compo nents may be relatively
lo w, the frequenc y is also very
low,
and consequently
loud
speaker cone mo vements of high
amplitude may be c aus ed. I f the
driving coil s hould move out o f
the regio n o f uniform fl ux-dens ity,
th e whole spectrum being rep ro
duc ed will b e disto rted i n a par
tic ularly unp leasant manner. Dis
tortio n in the o utp ut transformer
is also possible.
This s ituation c an be improved
materially by the ins ertio n of a
high-pass fil ter with a c ut-off fre
quenc y of about 20 c / s and a
fairly rap id attenuation belo w cut
off.
At thes e low frequenc ies ,
such filters are co nveniently com
posed of resistanc e-c ap ac itanc e
networks and may b e incorpor
ated in the bass-comp ens ation pre
amplifier.
Electrical

Fading

Control.

W hen the p ic kup is placed o n, o r

remo ved from, the disc the gain
mus t be reduc ed to avo id un
p leasant noises. W hile this may
be done by a mechanic al poten
tio meter the method is c lumsy
and do es not facilitate rap id re
cord c han ging. It has been found
co nvenient to emp loy an el ec tric al
metho d in whic h the gain of o ne
of the stages is reduc ed to zero at
the fl ic k of a switc h by a bias volt
age app li ed and remo ved by
means of a network with a suit
able time constant.

Pre-Amplifiers
Although all the refi nements
outlined so far are desirable, in
dividual requirements will vary
cons iderably and will determine
ho w muc h complic ation s hould be
attemp ted.
Two
gramophone
pre-amplifi er c ircuits will there
fore be described, which s ho uld
cover mos t requirements.
Fi g. 13 s hows a s impl e circuit
whic h gives good comp ens ation
for the Decc a recordi ng c harac
teristic.
The c irc uit constants
have been adjusted to give as
high a degree o f attenuatio n
belo w 20 c / s as is cons istent wi th
si mp licity. This i nvo lves a slight
sacri fic e of the response at 20 c / s.
The metho d of op eratio n is as
follows :
Negative feedback is
24

appli ed to the valve by the

po tential divider formed by R,.
and the i mp edance of CH' C15
and R33 At medi um frequencies
the reactance of C,. is small, and
that of C' 5 large compared with
the resistanc e of R33 and RH ' and
the gai n of the stage is determined
by the values of these resistors .
As the frequency is lo wered the
imp edance of the top limb in
c reases, giving a p ro gressive re
duc tio n of feedback.
This pro
duces a gain / frequency c harac
teristic whic h rises to a maximum,
determined by the c ircuit con
stants , and then dec reases due to
the coup ling compo nents Cl & ' Ra.
and R3
W ith increasing fre
quenc y the imp edanc e of C'5 de
c reas es, increasing the negative
feedback and p roduc ing a falling
gain / frequenc y c harac teris tic.
The c ap ac itanc e between the
inp ut transformer s econdary wind
ing and earth may, if large, affec t
the response a t the extreme upper
end o f the audible spectrum. This
effect is negligible with a well
des igned compo nent, but lo ng
leads s hould be avoided.
The
transformer s ho uld be mo unted
on
the pre-amp lifier
c hassis,
whic h in turn may conveniently
be fixed beneath the motor bo ard.
The o verall c haracteristic with
an i np ut
fro m
a p e rf ec t
" velocity " pic kup on a Decc a
disc is s hown in Fi g. 1 4 .
A mo re complex circ uit, whic h
gives nearly p erfec t compensatio n
and a very rap id attenuation
(3 0 db/ octave) belo w 20 C / S , is
s ho wn in Fig. 1 5 .
This pre
amplifier has a higher gain than
the p revious o ne, and is p artic u
larly s uitable for use in equip
ment where the p ic kup is loc ated
at some dis tanc e from the res t o f
the amplifier as the c irc uit ter
minates in a c athode follo wer.
The construction of this c ircuit
is no t reco mmended for those
witho ut acc ess to facilities for
c hec king the response of the
fi nished unit, as the p erfo rmanc e
may be s eriously affec ted by an
error in component values.
The frequency c harac teristic o f
this amp lifier is p roduc ed by the
comb inatio n of two c urves s ho wn
at A and B in Fig. 16.
These,
when added, give the c urve C.
Curve A is produced by the c ir
cuit assoc iated with V 1 3 , whic h is
similar in p ri nciple to that of

The WiIliamson Amplifier

Fig. 1 3
Simple
gramophone
preamplifier designed
for the Decca recording characteristic. When playing
E.M.I. records C15
may be switched out
of circuit. Alternatively, compensation can be effected R 29
in the tone-control
circuits.

List of Components for Fig. 13.

RZ7
R28
R29
R30
R3 l
R32
R33
R34
R35

Type
Highstability
carbon
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
Composition
do.
do.

Value to suit
transformer
0. 1 M O
0.68 M O
0.22 M O
47 k O
4.7 k O
0.22 M O
22 k O
2.2 M O

All resistors may be

otherwise specified.

011
012

013
C 14

015
016

0.5 p.F
50 p.F
16 p.F
4000 pF
100 pF
0.05 p.F

iW

rating

Rating Tolerance

W
!W
!W
!W
10%
10%

tolerance 20%

Type
Paper
Electrolytic
Electrulytic
Silvered mica
Silvered mica
Paper

Fig. 13. The attenuation at low

frequencies is due to the combined
effect of the intervalve couplings.
Curve B is produced by feedback
over V 14 through a parallel-T net
work tuned to 20 c / s.
The overall frequency response
curve, taken under the same con
ditions as that of Fig. 14, is shown
in Fig. 1 7 .
Fading Control.-The circuits
of Figs. 13 and 15 have no pro
vision for electrical fading. Fig. 18
shows a network which, when
connected to the cathode of V in
I
Fig. 13 or V I S in Fig. 15, enables
the gain to be reduced to zero in
about a second when the switch
S5 is closed. On opening S5 the
gain is restored to its normal value
in a similar period.
Complete Variable Compensa
tion Unit.-It is now necessary to
connect together the circuits j ust
described to form a flexible tone
compensation unit. This must be
done in such a manner that each
works well within its signal
handling capacity and does not
influence the others adversely.
Fig. 19 on pages 28 and 29 shows
the final arrangement.
Power
Supplie s . -The
High
Quality Amplifier has a frequency
response which is useful down to
2 c / s.
This necessitates a few
precautions when auxiliaries are
connected to the input. At these
very low frequencies, the balance
of the push-pull stages may not
be good, and there may be con
siderable signal in the supply line.

Rating
(V d.c.
working)
250
12
450
350
250
500

350V
R SI

C Il

R10

C '6

C '4

unless

...,

..

Tolerance

10%
10%

-.
...
."
-

.,.

;::
c
....0

R 2I

/'

z:

-I

CII

R 1S

S!<
:=
....

R14

Rn

........
.. ...

-2 0

g
FREQUENCY (e/' )

14.

R1S

...,

z ....
VI
0%
.... 2

50

Fig.

VI

C '5

g.
o

0
o

Response curve of circuit of Fig. 13 with ideal " velocity "

pickup.

A very carefully designed and

necessarily expensive decoupling
system is required if a high-gain
pre-amplifier is to operate satis
factorily from the amplifier power
supply.
The cost of such de
coupling is higher than that of a
separate power supply unit pro
ducing. say, 350 V at 20 mA. and
therefore the use of a unit of this
type is strongly recommended.
Performance.-Frequency
Re
sponse.-Reference to Figs. 6, 1 1 ,
14 and 17 will enable the fre
quency response of any combina
tion of units and control settings
to be determined.
The effect of
intermediate control settings may
be arrived at by interpolation.
Gain.-The figures underlined
in Fig. 19 are the peak signal
voltages necessary to give maxi
mum output at I ,ooo c / s when the
pre-amplifier is used in conjunc
tion
with
the
High
Quality
Amplifier.
The simple pickup pre-amplifier

25

(Fig. 13) has a gain of 11 at 1 , 000

c / s. Thus. when this unit is used,
full output may be obtained with
a pickup which produces 18 mV
peak.
Should it be required to
use the system with an insensitive
microphone. disconnection of C ..
in Fig. 13 will raise the gain of
the stage to about 150. with a
sensibly
linear
frequency
re
sponse. Full output will then be
obtained with an input of 1 . 3 mV
peak . The more complex pickup
pre-amplifier (Fig. 15) has a gain
of approximately 250.
Noise
Level.-With
careful
construction and by adj ustment
of R57 to give minimum hum. the
noise level may be reduced to an
equivalent input signal of 3-5 p.V
at the pickup pre-amplifier grid.
excluding the noise due to the
pickup
transformer
and
auxiliaries.
Distortion.-The
total
har
monic distortion produced by the
units when used up to the signal

The WiIliamson Amplifier

350V

R"
...

R'l
R ..

R"

Fig. 15.

R ..
R 78

R7 I

Pre-amplifier with high-pass filter.

Component Values for Circuit of Fig. 15.

RS8
Ro 9
Reo
Ru
R62
R6s
RM
R65
R 66
R67
R6 s
R6
9
R70
Rn
R72
R73
R74
R 75
R76
R77
R78

Type
Rating Tolerance
Composition
R7 9 0.22 M O
20 %
do.
lW
Rso 10 k O
20 %
* May require adjustment.
All resistors may be tW rating, except where otherwise stated.
Hating
(V d.c.
Type
working) Tolerance
Paper
Cso 0.5 f.LF
20 %
250
Electrolytic
12
Cn 50 f.LF
450
16 f.LF
Electrolytic
C52
Paper
10 %
C53 0.02 f.LF
350
Silvered mica
10 %
350
CM 4000 pF
Silvered mica
10 %
350
CS5 100 pF
Paper
20 %
250
CS6 0.5 f.LF
Electrolytic
12
C57 50 f.LF
Silvered mica
1%
C 5 B 0.01 f.LF
350
or matched
Paper
20 %
C59 0.25 f.LF
500
i:lilvered mica
1%
C60 5000 pF
3':;0
or matched
Silvered mica
C6 1 5000 pF
350
1%
or matched
Silvered mica
C62 7000 pF
3;-;0
10 %
Paper
C63 0.5 f.LF
20 %
500
Electrolytic
C G 4 16 f.LF
450

Rating Tolerance
Type
Value to suit High-stability
carbon
tmnsformer
20 %
do.
0. 1 M O
tW
20 %
do.
0.68 M O
tW
20 %
do.
0.22 M O
iW
20 %
do.
4.7 k O
10 %
Composition
0.22 M O
do.
20 k O*
20 %
High-stability
22 k O
!W
carbon
10 %
0.22 M O
Composition
0.20 M O*
do.
5%
4.7 M O
do.
20 %
do.
1.0 M O
lW
20 %
0.22 M O
do.
tW
20 %
2.2 k O
do.
'
1 0/0
R igh-stability carbon
2.0 1O
or matched
1%
2.0 M O
do.
or matched
1%
1.0 M O
do.
or matched
5%
Composition
10 M O
10 %
47 k O
do.
20 %
do.
l kO
lW
20 %
47 k O
do.

levels indicated is considerably

less than o. I per cent.
Form of the E quipment . -The
outward form which a complete
domestic sound equipment takes
is very much a matter of personal
taste .
The suggestions
which
follow have been found in prac
tice to provide ease of operation
combined with absence of trouble
some feedback effects .
The equipment is best con
structed in two units, one con
taining the loudspeaker and the

other the turntable.

This pre
vents mechanical and acoustical
feedback.
The control unit may be a con
sole of armchair height (overall
dimensions
about
ISin x 14in x
20in
high)
easily movable on
castors.
This may contain the
pick up and turntable, the pre
amplifier unit and, if desired, a
radio receiver, complete with its
power supply.
The output from
the pre-amplifier may be con
nected via a cathode follower to
26

a multicore-screened cable, which

connects the console with the
amplifier and loudspeaker unit,
and carries the mains and aerial
connections .
The amplifier and loudspeaker
unit may be a triangular corner
cabinet, with the amplifier built
into the lower portion, and the
loudspeaker occupying the upper
section, arranged at a convenient
level for listening.
This arrangement gives great
ease of manipulation, avoiding

The Williamson Amplifier

the necessity of rising from one's
comfortable seat to attend to the
controls or change a record . The
main amplifier may be included
in the console, but this tends to
make it heavy and bulky, and
gives rise to problems of heat dis
sipation which are not easily
solved.
Acknowledgment.-The writer
is greatly indebted to Ferranti,
Ltd . , for permission to publish
the results of work undertaken
on their behalf, and wishes to
thank
his colleagues for help
freely given.

<i

:z:

..,
.....
::: 0
....
5
....
.
a:

/ --,

350 V 9

\
I

IF;-'
'1-- 1
I

--IL
11

C.7 Re4-

Rei

I
l, J

I :
I I
, I

l'

OFa
}>'ON
5

O . P.

Fig. 18. Circuit of fading control.

Fig. 18.
Rating
W
tW

Rating
(V d.c.
working)
250
350
350

FREQUENCY

Derivation of high-pass
characteristic.

1950). 2.
B.se., M.LE.E.

FREQUENCY (cls)

Response curve of circuit of Fig. 1 5

Design for a Wobbulator (October 1950).

By M. G. Scroggie,
. ..
...
...
...
...
9d. net. By post lO!d.

Communications Receiving Equipment : 1. Ex-R.A.F. Communi

cations Receiver (July 1946). 2. Band-Pass Converters (October 1950). 3. More
about Band-Pass Converters (February 1951).
4. 21 m lcs Band Pass Converter
(July 1952). .
Is. net. By post Is. Hd.
Radio Feeder Unit :
Pre-amplifier.

High Quality Pre-tuned Receiver with Gramophone

By J. F. O. Vaughan (December 1951).
9d. net. By post lO!d.

Television Oscilloscope :

Simple Design with Five-Inch Cathode Ray

91. net. By post lO!d.
Tube. By W. Tusting (June and July 1952).

Midget Three-Valve A.C. Mains Receiver :

T.R.F. set. By S. W. Amos,

B.Se. (HONS.)

(February

Long and Medium Wave

1950).

6d. net.

By pOSt nd.

Sensitive T.R.F. Receiver :

W. Arnos,

1951).

B.se. (HONS.)
...

...

Embodying Automatic Gain Control. By S.

and G. G . Johnstone B.se. (HONS.) (October and November

...

...

4-1 3 -6
CHOKES FOR WILLlAMSON'S
AMPLIFIER

30H at 20 m/a.
1 0H at 1 50 m/a.
SOH at 20 m/a.
MAINS

18/6
35/6
22/-

TRANSFORM ERS

FS43. I n p u t
200/250v.
Output 42s/0/425v. at
200 m/a. 6.3v. 4 am ps.
CT. 6.3v. 4 a m ps. CT.
sv. 3 am ps.
Fully S h rouded . . . . 5 1 /W. I .
Input
200/250v.
Output
325/0/32sv. at
20 m/a. 6.3v. 0.6 am ps.
6.3v. 1 .5 am ps. Chassis
mounting . . . . . . . . 23/-

OTHER " WIRELESS WORLD " REPRINTS

Receiver Alignment Equipment : 1. Simple Cathode-Ray Oscilloscope

(March

TRANSFORME R
To A uthor's
Specification

List of Components for

-. L-__L-________________

Fig. 17.

WI LLIAMSON'S

Rez

RS1 0.22 MO
RS2 0.22 M O
RS3 4 7 k O
RS4 100 0
All resistors may be !W rating,
tolerance 20 % unless otherwise
specified.

Fig. 16.

Re3

...

Is. net.

By post Is. l ! d.

ILIFFE & SONS LTD., DORSET HOUSE, STAMFORD ST., LONDON., S.E.1.

Obtainable direct from :

27

H. ASHWORTH
676, GREAT HORTON
ROAD
B RA D FO R D
V O R K S.
'Phone : BRA DFORD 7 1 9 1 6

The Williamson Amplifier

'50V
Rn

INPUT FROM
PICKUP OR
PRE -AMPLIFIER

Fig. 19

R so
Cl

C20

C ,s

RS I

R 3I

C '4

R 48

R 47

Complete tone compensation and filter unit. The input and output voltages underlined are peak values
for full output from the main amplifier.
List of Components for Fig. 19.

Ra6
R3;
R38
Ra9
R40
RH
R42
R43
R44
R4s
R46
R47
R48
R49
Rso
R5 1
R52
RS3
RS(

0.25 MO log.
47 k O
47 k O
3.3 k O
0.25 MO log.
100 k O
6.8 k O
10 k O
0. 1 M O linear
100 k O
2.2 k O
0. 1 M O
0.47 M O
0.47 M O
33 k O
100 k O
3.3 k O
1 MO
High0.1 M O
stability
0. 1 M O
carbon
50 k O
100 0
resistors may be !W rating,

Rss
RS6
RS7
All
otherwise specified.

C l;
C 18
C19
C20
C21
C22
C23
C24
C2S

50 JLF
8 JLF
0.25 JLF
150 pF max.
0.01 JLF
0.05 JLF
1000 pF
50 JLF
0.05 JLF

Type
Electrolytic
Electrolytic
Paper
Preset
Paper
do.
Silvered mica
Electrolytic
Paper

Rating

Tolerance
Type
Silvered mica
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
Electrolytic
Paper
Electrolytic
Silvered mica
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
Electrolytic
do.

lW
lW

lW
10 %
10 %
10 %

lW
lW
or
matched

tolerance

20 %

1%
1%
1%
unless

Rating
( V d.c.
working) Tolerance

12
450
500
250
250

12
500

20 %
20 %
20 %
20 %
20 %

Choke.
CHa 50H at

20

mA.

Rating
(V d.c.
working) Tolerance

Resistance about

12
500
450
or
matched

450
500
1,500 O.

Mains Transformer.
Primary : 10-0-200-220-240 V, 50 c/s.
325-0-325 V, 20 mA d.c.
Secondaries : 1.
2. 6.3 V, 0.6 A.
6.3 V, 1.5 A.
3.
Switches.
Single pole double throw.
SI'
St.
Double pole double throw.
Sa. Single pole double throw.
S4' 5 bank, 5 position selector switch.

5%
5%
5%
5%
5%
5%
5%
20 %

l%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%

The WiIliamson Amplifier

THE WILLlAMSON
AMPLIFIER DESERVES
JOINTS SOLDERED WITH

OUTPUT
RSS AHPl?FlER

One imperfectly

Radio Feeder

Un it (see page 30 10r general details)

ADDITIONAL COi l DATA

The radio feeder unit described
on succeeding pages was designed
originally to provide high-quality
reception from medium-wave sta
tions and coil-winding data covered
a range of frequencies from 500 kc / s
to r .6 Mc / s.
Since then there have been many
requests for guidance in the con-

struction of coils for the reception

of the Droitwich transmitter on
200 kc / s, and the author has sup
plied the following additional data
for those who get a higher signal
strength for the B . B .C. Light Pro
gramme from the long-wave trans
mitter.

Aerial

Coupling

Winding

No. of turns

Inductance
(,uH )

Primary

180

750

Secondary

330

2,000

Primary

260

1 ,500

Coellicient
of coupling
(approx.)
0.3

330

corrosive Ersin Flux ensuring speedy

and reliable soldering without waste or
trouble and guaranteeing that there are
no lengths of solder without flux. Correct
proportions of both flux and solder are
automatically applied. Fast-acting, fast
holding Multicore is used exclusively
by leading manufacturers of radio, T/V
and electronic equipment. Make certain
of a good job-with Multicore.

SIZE 1 CARTON (shown above) has

been designed specifically for easy
use.
Simply pull out the length you
require.
C 1 601 8 specification (60/40
alloy) is particularly recommended for
the Williamson Amplifier

RADIO &; T/V SERVICE

ENGINEER'S 1 lb. REEL.
u;es

which demand

fair quantities of
Contains

solder.

approximately

167 feet of 1 8 S.W.G.5OJ50

2,000

alloy

Coils are wound with 40-42 s.w.g.,

d .s.c. copper wire.
To give the correct coefficient of
coupling the spacing between the
windings of the aerial transformer
should be increased to 0.2sin. The
disposition of the coupling trans
former windings is unaltered.
When continuous tuning is to be

may

Multicore and run no risks. Multicore

contains 3 cores of extra-active, non

For

0.6
Secondary

joint

THE

COIL-WINDING DATA FOR THE LONG-WAVE RANGE

Transformer

soldered

endanger the successful assembly of the

Williamson Amplifier.
Solder with

used, the minimum capacitance of the

ganged capacitor should be increased
by the addition of a IOopF silvered
mica capacitor across each secondary
winding of the transformers, giving a
coverage of approximately 150-300
kc/so
For fixed tuning, the capacitors
should be 300 pF.
29

Ersin

Multicore

Solder.

Ersin Multicore Solder can be obtained

from radio shops everywhere. Size I
carton 5/- retail. I lb. reel 1 5/-.

MULTICORE SOLDERS LTD.

MULTlCORE WORKS, MAYLANDS AVENUE,
HEMEL HEMPSTEAD, HERTS (BOXMOOR 31136)

The Williamson Amplifier

HE

Design for a
Radio Feeder Unit

preceding articles in this

series have described ampli
fier, tone compensation and
gramophone
pre-amplifier
units
which are capable of driving a
loudspeaker from the output of a
pickup or a radio receiver.
The
design of a radio receiver which
would be suitable for use under
the varied reception conditions
which exist in the populous parts
of the country , and which at the
same time could be constructed
simply and with certainty of re
snlts, would be a difficult under
taking.
In
addition,
such
a
receiver wonld be unnecessarily
complex for the needs of that
section of the community which
lives within the primary service
area of high-powered twin-wave

Fig. 20. Circuit dia

gram of local station
radio receiver. Positi ons o f selector
switches for pre-set
tuning shown at X.

transmitters, and which desires

only to receive transmissions from
these by the simplest possible
means.
In order that the units described
in the series should form a com
plete domestic sound installation,
it is proposed to outline the design
of a small two-stage receiver suit
able for the reception of medium
wave transmissions within the
primary service area. The type of
receiver to be described gives satis
factory results where the spacing
between the carrier frequencies of
the principal transmitters is high,
say 200 kc / s o
It is not suitable
for use in districts where closely
spaced
powerful
transmissions
exist, or where interference is
severe.
The receiver circuit is

offered as an indication of the

general lines on which to proceed,
and is capable of being adapted to
individual requirements and con
ditions.
The basic circuit, shown in
Fig. 20, consists of an r . f . ampli
fier,
transformer-coupled
to
a
negative-feedback detector.
Cir
cuit values for a number of alter
na tive tuning arrangements are
given .
Possibly
the
simplest
scheme, from the point of view of
construction, is to use a twin
ganged capacitor to cover the
range, although by this method it
is not easy to secure a uniformly
good performance at each end of
Alter
the medium-wave band.
natively the receiver may be pre
tuned, stations being selected by a

+ 35 0 V
R e6

E F 39
or

KTW 6 1

T,

::J

C70
Re9

Res

C 74

R92

C7S

R94

OUTPUT

C69

COMPONENT VALUES FOR CIRCUIT OF FIG. 2Cl

Rating
0. 1 MO
0.1 MO
t w
330 0
1.5 kO
0.1 MO
2W
10 IrO
47 IrO
4.7 IrO
22 IrO
2.2 MO
R,.4
All resistors may be ! W rating, tolerance
20 per cent unless otherwise specified.
RS5
R S6
RS7
Rss
R S9
R90
R9 1
R 92
R9 3

Type
See text
O. lfLF
O.lfLF
O. lfLF
16fLF
100pF
100pF
O. lfLF

Paper
Paper
Paper
Electrolytic
Silvered mica
Silvered mica
Paper

Rating (V d.c.

working)
250

350
350

450

500

The Williamson Amplifier

WINDING DATA FOR R.F. TRANSFORMERS

push-button or
rotary switch .
The use of variable inductors in
this arrangement provides a simple
method of achieving a uniform
selectivity and sensitivity over the
range, with the disadvantage that
two coils or tuned circuits must be
provided for each station to be
received. In the unlikely event of
serious thermal drift, correction is
easily applied by the use of nega
tive temperature coefficient capa

Aerial

Primary

35

30

Secondary

95

160

Primary

60

80

Secondary

95

160

Coupling

dimensions of the coil formers and

windings are shown in Fig. 23 .
When the capacitance is being
chosen, allowance should be made
for strays, which will probably be
about 25 pF.
The values used
should therefore be less than those
indicated by this amount. In prac
tice the nearest standard value
should b e chosen and allowance
made in the value of inductance .
Movement o f the core will enable
a variation of approximately 18
per cent to be made in the induct
ance.
Construction.-In order to pre
serve stability, precautions must
be observed when constructing the
receiver.
The most likely cause

correct number of turns are pile

wound in a random manner be
tween thin Paxolin or cardboard
cheeks, which serve to guide and
support the edges of the winding.
This gives an approximation to
the performance of a wave-wound
coil.
The table gives winding data for
transformers to be used with a
twin-ganged
capacitor
with
a
capacitance swing of 485 pF with
trimmers, covering a frequency
range of approximately 550- 1 ,550
kc / s o
When separately-switched tuned
transformers are to be used, the
values of secondary inductance
and tuning capacitance may be
read from the curve of Fig. 2 I
against
transmitter
frequency .
This curve has been cornputed for
an L / C ratio of unity (L in ILH,

:r:
::t u...

.,::;
w

)= ;-

300['0.,,'
'" u
:z
t:; '"
>-:::>
! u
'"
Q.
I
'"
>u
er
'" <!> 200
Cl
u
:z

:z
0

Vl

i-

r- fc- !
-1--

1
500

1 00

"7 ,:$>!<..'L
':' ",,->.'<'

rr-

I
I

etr-

(kefs)

t-....

1,500

/
V [/

1 00

r-

V /

1,600

",
"

1 """'-

FREQUENCY

Fig. 2 1 .

of instability is the presence of

undue stray capacitance between
the anode and control grid of V , . '
The valve types used have an
anode-grid capacitance of less than
0.003 pF, and a layout should be
chosen which does not materially
The design,
increase this figure.
based on this value, has a factor
of safety of about 4.
Although
the valve is metallized, a screening
can may be necessary to reduce
leakage to the valve base.
All
components in the grid circuit
should be kept above the chassis,
and all components in the anode
circuit below the chassis. Where
components in the anode circuit,
or in the following grid circuit

300

J--"

1,000

0.65

rt-H- I+

:z

:::>
>--

j - j- -

0.35

400

C in pF) , which is nearly opti

mum.
The number of turns
necessary to produce the required
inductance with the formers and
dust-cores specified may then be
obtained from Fig.
22.
The

Coefficient
of coupling
(approx.)

Inductance

(ILH )

citors.
R. F. Transformers. - Winding
data are given to enable r . f . trans
formers to be wound simply on
standard formers without the use
of a wave-winding machine.
The

400

No. of turns

Winding

Transformer

70

./

V-

//

/,

l!
L

lL
/

1
,
/
,:,'" r---j--<:S

'v
x",

!.'!-"/ <..<:S

//

:
80

90

100

110

1 20

1 30

1 40

NUMBER OF TURNS

Curve relating tuned circuit parameters

and resonance frequency.

Fig. 22. Curve relating inductance and num

ber of turns for windings discussed in text.
31

The Williamson Amplifier

must b e brought above the chassis,
as is the case when tuning is by
means of a ganged capacitor, they
must be screened carefully from
Figs. 24 and
the aerial circuits.
25 show suggested layouts for con
tinuously variable and switched
0 ' 1 2 S ---..
tuning arrangements.
SLOTS CUT W I T H
"'- .
The Detector.-To give low
T H I N SAW
distortion, the detector requires
to work at a fairly high signal
As
level-say 5V r . m . s . output.
the receiver is intended to feed the
MAT E R I A L ; 0 ' 0 1 S .. B A KE L I ZED FA B R I C
tone compensation unit, which
O R PAXOLlN
requires an input of only 200 mV
peak, the output is taken from a
tapping on the detector load resis
COUP L ING T R A N S F O R M E R
AER I A l T R AN S F O R M E R
This greatly reduces the
tance.
a . c . loading on the detector and
enables it to handle high modula
tion levels without distortion.
Alignment Procedure.-(r) Set
SEC
ganged capacitor at a position
about five degrees from the mini
P R I.
mum capacitance end, and adjust
trimmers for maximum output
from the high-frequency Third
Programme.
(2) Set capacitor about twenty
D A T A FOR F I X E D T U N I N G
degrees from maximum capaci
tance position and adjust dust
P R I MARY W IN D I N G .
P R IMARY W I N D I N G . ( D I RECT A E R I AL
CONNECTION
cores for maximum out
2
S
N
R
U
T
SECONDARY
F
O
NUMBER
{,
'I, N U M BER OF SECONDARY TURNS
put from the low-fre
ProThird
quency
SECONDARY W I ND I N G . S E E T E X T
P R I MA R Y W I N D I NG. (70 ft FEEDER
gramme.
'{,o N U M B E R OF SECONDARY TURNS
S '{2" --------.4
(3) Repeat this pro
SECONDARY W I N D I N G . SEE T E X T
cess until both stations
CO NN ECTO R BLOCK
are accurately tuned.
P o w e r Supplies.
Formers are standard
Fig. 23.
The receiver is intended
moulded type, fitted with 8-mm
CO i l

. /.

FORMERS

===:!!!!P===f'!!=

r-----

'\

[0

threaded iron-dust cores. All coils

are wound with Litz wire consisting
of 7-9 strands of 45-48 s.w.g.
enamelled copper wire.

IN

s'{;-------
BLOCK

WAFERS

ALU M I N I U M OR COPPER S C R E E N
EXT E N D I NG BELOW C H A S S I S

AND 3'{' ABOVE C H A S S I S W I T H

.
I/ C UTOU T FOR G A N G E D CAPACITOR
h.,--l-.I'-...-=-....,..... .,

Cn

cW

1 '/;' D E E P

Fig. 24. This diagram

shows a plan view of
top of chassis.
32

Fig.

SWITCH
=L
t::;:;:::::::::
:
:

t8
CHASS IS

24

S C R E E N AS

Fig. 25. Plan

view of top
of c h a s s i s.
Swi tched
model.

t o b e supplied from the

power
pre-amplifier
supply. The decoupling
to
adequate
not
is
enable it to be fed from the main
amplifier supply.
Acknowledgment. - The writer
is indebted to Mr. A . T. Shepherd
of Ferranti, Ltd . , for his assis
tance in the compilation of data
for these notes.

High quality
output

TRAN SFO RM E R
It gives us great pleasure to announce our latest output
transformer for the " Williamson " amplifier. The
result of some painstaking research, this instrument
represents quite a considerable advance on our 2B36B.
Typical technical details are as follows :

we know, unique and permits of seven different

secondary impedances with virtually no change in
leakage reactance as against the normal four obtained
with customary arrangements of eight sections.
In the 3C67A these impedances are 0.45n, 1 .8 0,
40, 72, I I 0, 1 6 0 and 300. One additional imped
ance-220-can be obtained if required with an
increase in leakage reactance of about 1 0 per cent.

Primary
D.e. Resistance

900 + 900.
Incremental inductance taken at 5 v. 50 c,'s., 100 hys.
minimum.
Nominal impedance 1 0,0000 centre tapped.
Leakage reactance tested at I v. 800 cls. :
Whole Primary to the secondary connected for 30[1
and short-circuited, 1 6 m 'Hys.
Insertion loss
0.5 d.b. (6t per cent.).
Half primary to the 300 secondary, 8 m iHys.
Half primary to the other half short-circuited,
17 m/Hys.

Frequency Response
With no feedback and assuming a generator impedance
of 2,5000 the frequency response, even at incremental
levels, is virtually flat (0.25 d.b.) from 12! c is . to
25 kc s.
There is a smooth high lrequency " roll
off " with no objectionable resonances.

Power handling capacity

At 15 watts at 12t c!s., the core material is being
worked at 1 0,000 gauss and the distortion introduced
by the iron at this frequency and power level without
any feedback should not exceed 2.5 per cent.
At 25 the transformer will handle 60 watts with
half this distortion, and in either case quite a modest
amount of feedback will reduce the distortion to
negligible proportions.

Secondary
Considerable thought has been given to the question
of secondary impedances, and we have decided that,
for Loudspeaker matching, the most useful range is
given by a basic impedance of 0.450.
The arrangement of secondary sections is, so far as

outstanding

resu lts "

" F Oq",,,,

(SAVAG E '-:DEVIZ ES)

". . . As Mr. Williamson himself observes in one

of his Wireless Warld articles, the output trans
former is probably the most critical component
in a high-fidelity amplifier. Your transformer
performs this exacting duty with full honours,
and I shall always recommend its use to anyone
undertaking construction of a " Williamson."
With many thanks for a first-class job."

('M ' T t\)

N U RSTEED

E. L.

ROA D
Telephone

D E V I Z ES
Devizes
33

536

J.,

Swindon.

W ILTS

The Williamson Amplifier

Replies to Queries
R aised

HE series of articles recently published on the

High-Quality Amplifier has aroused consider
able interest and given rise to correspondence .
I t i s hoped that these notes, which deal with
matters of general interest arising from the corres
pondence, may be of assistance to readers who have
similar difficulties.

Output Transformer .-When assembling the core

of the transformer, care should be taken to ensure
that the edges of the T and U laminations butt to
gether. The magnetic properties of the core are de
pendent upon careful assembly and tight clamping.

the pickup .
The tone compensation unit of Fig. 19 may be
constructed on orthodox lines, the only essential being
to provide sufficient frontal area to accommodate
seven controls.
Grid leads should be kept short to
avoid hum pick-u p . The blank valveholder terminals
(pin 6) should not be used as anchors for the leads
to the top-cap grids. The power supply components
can, with advantage, be assembled on a separate
chassis.
Conclusion.-The circuits published in the series
have been evolved over a considerable period of time
and are capable of giving a very high standard of
performance. Requests have been received for data
on modifications, but as it is rarely possible to
determine the full effect of these without carrying
out tests, in general, no such data can be supplied
by the writer. *

Static B alancing .-The method of balancing the

standing currents in the output valves, which was
suggested in the article in the August, 1949, issue, is
dependent for its success on close matching of the
d . c . resistances of the halves of the output trans
former primary.
Nominally the sections are identi
cal, and when carefully machine-wound from the
same reel of wire, the resistances should not differ
materially .
It is possible, however, due to varia
tions in wire diameter and insulation thickness, for
the resistances to differ by up to 5 per cent and even,
in extreme cases, 10 per cent.
Should this occur, a
compensating resistor should be added in series with
the low-resistance side in order to equalize the resist
ances, and the meter connected across the equalized
sections.
Other more direct methods may, of course, be used

Characteristics o f 2,000 Receiving

Valves and C.R. Tubes

Constructors

to adjust the anode currents to equality, but unless

the transfoer has a split primary winding they
.
are mconvement, and great care should be taken to
ensure that the insertion of instruments does not
ause oscillation which could give misleading read
mgs.
Construction.-There is little to add to the con
structional data on the main amplifier given in the
August, 1949, issue, except perhaps to explain that
the purpose of the sub-chassis screen, shown in Fig 3
(see page 1 5 ) , is to prevent feedback from the anode
connections of the output valves to the input of the
It should extend downwards to the full
amplifier.
depth of the chassis.
The method of construction of the preamplifier
and tone-compensation units will usually be adapted
to individual circumstances.
One suggested method
?f construction for the preamplifier circuit of Fig. 1 5
I S t o use a shallow chassis about gin x 3in x lin .
The
valves and electrolytic capacitors are mounted in a
group along the centre of this chassis , and the other
components mounted vertically above the chassis on
tag strips arranged on each side of the central group.
The connections to the valveholders are taken
through slots cut in the top of the chassis.
The
input transformer should be mounted on the top of
he chassis at one end.
With the sizes given, there
IS ample room for a screened component of dimen
sions up to 3in x 3in x 2in.
The whole unit should
be fitted with screening covers, and mounted on the
underside of the motorboard as close as possible to

Valves.-There is no exact equivalent for the

Osram type KT66, and its use is recommended where
possible.
When the equipment is to be used over
seas, the KT66 may be difficult to obtain, and 6L6
glass and metal types may be regarded as direct
replacements, with the proviso that the total anode
and screen dissipation should be reduced from 25 W
to 2 1 . 5 W by reducing the total current from 125 mA
The use of these
to I IO mA by adjustment of R 1
2
valves with reduced rating entails a slight reduction
The 807 may be used at
of the maximum output .
the full rating of 25 W, with modifications to the
valve connections.
Since the articles were written , a modification of
the EF37 has appeared under the nUIilber EF37A.
This has improved heater construction giving greater
freedom from hum, and its use may be advantageous
for V. and V ' 3 '
No other changes in valve types can be recom
mended, as their use would involve radical redesign .

RADIO VALVE
DATA

by

Or, for that matter, by Wireless Warld.-Er>.

3rd Edition. Compiled by the staff of W IRELESS WORLD. Gives the

main characteristics and base connections of over 2,000 types of British
and American radio valves, and over 1 50 cathode-ray tubes. These are
further classified into obsolete, replacement or current types as recom
mended by the makers. 80 pp. 3s. 6d. net. By post 3s. IOd.
Obtainable from all booksellers or direct from :

ILIFFE

& SONS

34

LTD., DORSET HOUSE, STAMFORD

ST., LONDON, S,R 1 .

The WilIiamson Amplifier

Modifications for High-impedance

Pickups and Long-playing Records

HE

introduction of long-playing records in Great

Britain, after the publication in November,
1949, of gramophone pre-amplifier circuits for
the " High Quality Amplifier " which were suitable
only for the 78-r. p . m . standards, has made it neces
sary to revise these designs.
The principle of recording with a rising frequency
characteristic at high frequencies and reproducing
with a correspondingly falling characteristic, in order
to effect a reduction in the level of surface-noise from
the material, is a well-established and useful one . In
the case of long-playing records it results, in conjunc
tion with the use of a homogeneous plastic for the
record material, in an almost silent background.
There are, however, dangers attendant upon its
use. The scheme is based on the hypothesis that the
energy level of music decreases with increase of fre
quency above about 500 c / s. Thus it should be pos
sible steadily to increase the gain of the recording
channel above this frequency. This appears particu
larly attractive at first sight, since with the normally
used constant-velocity characteristic the recorded am
plitude for a constant recording level is inversely
proportional to frequency and is therefore very small
at high frequencies.
Initially, a rising frequency response characteristic
producing practically constant amplitude at constant
level was used, the energy level distribution being
relied upon to restrict the amplitude at high frequen
cies. The effect of this was, in practice, to cancel the
improvement in tracing, which the small-groove
system offered, by producing, at high frequencies and
high orchestral levels, recorded waveforms with radii
of curvature too small to be traced accurately. The
resulting distortion manifested itself as a tearing
sound superimposed on the full orchestra .
There is additional evidence to suggest that the
original hypothesis required revision, since it is
demonstrable that it breaks down when such per
cussion instruments as cymbals and castanets are con
sidered, particularly when the frequency range is
wide. Indeed, the peak power level required to re
produce cymbals exceeds that normally required at
medium frequencies.
+20
This early experience has led to
the adoption of a characteristic
which is a better compromise
>between these conflicting factors
to
u
and gives much more satisfactory
I
Cl
o
....
>
results in practice. Fig. 26 shows
the provisional recording charac
8
<:>
teristic now in use by the Decca
15 - 1 0
- f
Record
Company
for
L.P.
a:
The amount of treble
records.
-20
o
boost is lower than the theoreti
N
cal optimum, but the use of even
this
amount
of
compensation

means that the first stages o f the pre-amplifier must

be capable of handling occasional hig -freque cy
peaks which are greater than those expenenced WIth
standard records, unless the pick-up is a constant
amplitude one, or its output at high frequencies is
attenuated before reaching the pre-amplifier.
The original designs of pre-amplifier employed
negative-feedback methods of compensation, and
hence are particularly suitable for a wide range of
inputs. However, pickups are available with such a
wide variety of output levels that no single circuit
will cope adequately with them, and external attenu
ators may have to be used.

Modifications.-Dealing first with the single-valve

pre-amplifier (original circuit, Fig. 1 3 , p . 25), . the
.
revised circuit of Fig. 27 shows the modlficatlOns
necessary to provide alternative standard and long
playing characteristics.
To simplify the switching.
by using a single-pole changeover switch, the capa
citor C l 5 is left permanently in circuit, giving a
Decca 78-r . p . m . characteristic in the " 78 " position .
Alternatively, C15 may be removed to give the E . M . I .
characteristic .
In either case, correction for the
other 78-r . p . m . characteristic may be made by means
of the treble control on the tone compensation unit.
The advantage of this simplified switching is that
it becomes practicable to gang the switch to the
motor speed-change con trol to give automatic com
pensation. If this arrangement is not desired, a two
pole multi-position switch may be used, to give three
or more combinations, as in Fig. 28.
It should b e noted that the position of C l . has been
altered, so that the whole of the feedback netwcrk is
at earth potential. This avoids switching transients
which would otherwise occur, due to charging and
discharging of capacitors as the switch is operated.
A small capacitor, C l 7 ' has been connected across
the input transformer secondary . This is to prevent
any tendency to instability or peaking at high fre-

Fig. 26. Recording characteristic used for current Decca

long-playing records.

I
I

I
I

+-+1
I

I- i--

J---

1--1I

0
o

o
o

fREQUENCY

35

( c/s )

0
o
o

o
o
o

o
N

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36

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LONDON,

S.E. l

The Williamson Amplifier

a switch inaccessible, consideration should be given
to the use of a relay in place of the selector switch,
rather than the use of extension leads. This has the
additional advantage that it could easily be operated
from the speed- change lever by means of a micro
switch or from the additional switched pin which is
a feature of some pickups with interchangeable heads.
Pickups without Transformers .-A number of pick
ups are available which do not normally require a
transformer.
It is possible to use the majority of
these with the pre-amplifier circuits, by interposing a
suitable I : I transformer.
In other cases, when the
connecting leads are short, it may be practicable to
connect the pick up directly in place of
the transformer secondary. The limit
ing factor will be the capacitance
3<;0 V
between the leads and their screening,
which will be shunted across R
or
R64, and which, if sufficiently l ge,
would upset the treble compensation.
The value of this stray capacitance
shoul not be allowed to exceed 50 pF,
and If C ' 5 or C55 is switched out,
should be compensated by a capacit
ance of one tenth of its value in
parallel with R33 or R63, to give a
linear frequency-response character
istic at high frequencies.
Resistors R27 and R.; s must be

quencies, caused by the presence in the feedback loop

of the stray secondary reactances of the transformer.
The necessity for this capacitor and its minimum
value will vary with the individual transformers. Its
value should be kept as small as possible, consistent
with stability.
Modifications to the three-stage high-pass pream
plifier (original circuit Fig. I S , p . 26) are on the same
lines, and Fig. 29 shows the revised circuit.
With these pre-amplifier circuits, the wiring to the
selector switch must be kept short, and the switch
should, if possible, be mounted on the pre-amplifier.
Should the position of the pre-amplifier render such

Left : Fig. 27. Simple two-position switch

ing in Single-valve pre-amplifier for
playing Decca 78-r.p.m. standard and
33t-r.p.m. L.P. records.
Compensation
for the E.M.I. 78-r.p.m. standard charac
teristic should be applied separately by the
treble tone control.

List of Components for Fig. 27

R28
R29
Ra o
R3l
Ra2
Raa
R34
Ra5

Cll
CI2
C Ia
CI5
C I6
Cn
C7 8
C 79
C80
S6

Value to suit
transformer
O.IMf.!
0.68Mf.!
0.22Mf.!
47kf.!
4.7kf.!
0.22Mf.!
22kf.!
2.2Mf.!

Type
High-stability
carbon
do.
do.
do.
do.
do.
Composition
do.
do.

Rating

Tolerance

Below : Fi. 28. Alternative circuit (applic

able to Figs. 27. 29 and 30) with three
POSition switch giving compensation for
Decca 33t. Decca 78 and E.M.I. 78-r.p.m.
recording characteristic!.
C I 6 0R Cn

---------+10 %
10 %

All resistors may be lW rating, tolerance 20% unless

otherwise specified.
Rating
(V d.c.
Tolerance
working)
Type
250
Paper
O.5ftF
12
50ftF
Electrolytic
450
do.
16ftF
10 %
250
Silvered mica
1 00pF
500
0.05ftF
Paper
250
Silvered mica
10-50pF
10 %
250
do.
2500pF
10 %
250
do.
1 500pF
10 %
250
300pF
do.
Single-pole changeover switch
37

OOOlSJLF

R"
OR
Rn

R'4
OR
Ru.

HANNE Y
WI LLlAMSON
1 2 I % s i lver mica condensers for
fig. 1 9 . . . . . . .. ........ . . . . . . ...... . . . . .
7 5% s i lver mica condensers for
fig. 19 . . . .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .......... .
25 Resistors and pots for W i l l iam.ion main amplifier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
9 Resistors for fig. 1 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
23 Resistors for fig. 1 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
22 Resistors and pots for fig. 19 .. .
6 Condensers for fig. 1 3 . . . . . . . . . . . .
15 Condensers for fig. 1 5. . . . . . . .. . . .
33 Condensers for fig. 19 . . . . . ...... .
10 Resistors for fig. 20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
7 Condensers for fig. 20 (less C68
and Cn)
...........................
Matched pair of47 K 2watt resistors
Matched pair of 22K It watt
resistors
.......................... .
5 Bank 6 position switch . . . . . . . . . . . .
S.P.D.T. gen u i n e OAK switches .. .
D.P.D.T. gen u i n e OAK switches .. .
Rel iance 100 ohm potentiometers

33
9
24
37
15
47
54
6

9
6
0
0
0
0
6
8

T.C.C.
.25
mfd.
metal packs
(coupl ing condensers for fig. I )
each
T.C.C.
.05
mfd.
metal mites
(coupling condensers for fig. I )
each
KT 66 valves, matched pair, i n cluding tax
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . pair
EF37A valves (EF37 now obsolete)
( including tax) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . each
Mains transformer to specification
10 henry 1 50 mA choke to specification . . .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . "
30 henry 20 mA choke to specification .... . . ........................
W i l l iamson output transformers
by ELSTONE (3.6 ohm secondary) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

9
0

2
9
4
4
5

COMPON ENTS

AMPLIFIER

PARTRIDGE type WWFBjOj l .7

output transformers unpotted,
127
including packing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acas GP 20 pickups, standard o r
71
LP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
43
Heads only, standard or LP . . . . . . . . .
B.S.R. type GU4 gram-motors . . . . . . 9 19
B.S.R. type MU 1 4 3 speed motors 7 3
B.S.R. type M U 1 0 2 speed m otors 3 14
COLLARO type 3 RC521 autochangers , 3 speed u n m ixed, with
2 Hi-Fi crystal heads. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 14
COLLARO type 3 RC522 autochangers, as above but plays
10 and 12 inch records MIXED 21 4
CHANCERY LP attachment, converts 78 r.p.m. motor to LP i n a
72
matter o f s ec.onds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
GOOD MANS AXIOM 1 50 speakers 10
GOODMANS AUDIOM 60 speakers 8 12
ROLA G I 2 speakers . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 5

Small q uantities of W O C E N mains trans

formers, chokes and ouput transformers
are avai lable from time to time, as de..
tailed in o u r current list supplement.

15

12
4

BATH

OF

8
6
4
8
6

2 10
2
50

2
I

25
57

20

10

90

The above is only 0 selection of our large stocks, send 6d. stomp now for our current list and supplement,
and save yourself time and trouble.

L.

77

F. D A N N E Y

LOWER

BR ISTO L

4
6
4
4

8
3
6
6
6
0

BAT H

ROAD,

381 1

Telephone :

.
............
.. ....................
...
..
.. .....
.. ...
.,..
..
.. .............,.......
....
.. ......

RADIO DE S IG N E R'S HAN D BOOK

A comprehensive reference, the work of

10 authors and 23 collaborating engmeers

Previous editions of Radio Designer's Handbook

especially interested in the design and appli

have

cation of radio receivers or audio amplifiers ;

achieved

exceptional

success,

many

thousands of copies of this standard reference

it

work having been sold

of the

which

has been

The book deals with general theory,

means

of

world.

components,

testing

in

and

the

previous

Yolume,

authors

and

parts

design.

edition is more than four

hitherto unpublished.

all

The

new

an
a

enormous

and

contains

work

collaborating

en

amount

made readily

fully-detailed

of

data

accessible

list

of

by

contents

and a comprehensive index.

times as large as

It is the work of ten

twenty-three

contains

The

main

subjects

arp ,

valves

and

valve

testing, general theory and components, audio

frequencies, radio frequencies, power supplies,

gineers, under the editorship of F. Langford

design of complete A-M and F-M receivers,

Smith.

and reference data.

The

work

is

intended

for

those

Publication May, 1953.

42s. net.

By post 43s. 6d.

Obtainable from all booksellers or direct by post from the address below.
ILIFFE

&

SONS

LTD .,

DORSET

HOUSE,

S TAMFORD

ST.,

LONDON

S.E.I

The Williamson Amplifier

retained to provide a conducting path to the valve
grid when the pickup heads are being interchanged.
There may be cases, where one side of the input
must be earthed, in which it is impracticable to utilize
the pre-amplifiers in this way.
In this event the
circuit may be modified as shown in Fig. 30 .
This
circuit applies to both pre-amplifiers . In it, the trans
former had been replaced by a resistive network R " ,
R , , , mixing the input and feedback voltages.
The input resistace of this circuit is approximately
0 . 1 MO, and its voltage gain at I , OOO C / s is g.
The
frequency-response curve is almost identical with that

of Fig. 14, p. 2 5 .
This circuit is suitable for most
moving-iron variable-reluctance pickups, and can be
used with piezoelectric pickups which have been
loaded to give an output proportional to recorded
velocity.

Danger of Overloading.-The input to the pre

amplifiers should be restricted to 200 mV in the case
of the single-stage circuits and 50 mV for the three
stage circuit, and if necessary a potential divider
should be used .
Piezoelectric Pickups.-Lightweight piezoelectric
pickups have recently become popular, particularly
for L . P . recordings. Since these give a relatively high
output, no pre-amplifier is necessary and any correc
tion required may be achieved by means of simple

Below : Fig. 29. Revised three-stage pre-amplifier circuit with

high-pass filter, to play Decca 33t- and 78-r.p.m. records.

R"

+3 50 V

c"

C"
C ..

331/'1
Cas

Css

VI S

R61
R"

R"

R"

R '4

R"

t;

C"
C 57

R"

R 1I

Component Values for Circuit of Fig. 29

Rss

Value to suit

RS9
R60
R61
R62
R63
R64
R65

Transformer
O.IMn
0.68Mn
0.22 Mn
4.7kn
0.22Mn
20k n*
22kn

R66
R67
R6S
R69
R70
R71
R72

0.22Mn
0.20Mn*
4.7Mn
1 .0M n
0.22 Mn
2.2 kn
2.0Mn

High-stability
Carb on
do.
do.
do.
do.
Composition
do.
High-stability
carbon
Composition

!W
ftW

do.

High-stability
carbon

2.0M n
do.
R73
1 .0M n
do.
R74
10Mn
Composition
R7 5
47kn
do.
R76
do.
lkn
R7 7
47kn
do.
R7S
do.
0.22Mn
R79
do.
10kn
Rso
do.
2.2Mn
R9 5
* May require adjustment.

20
20
20
20
10

CV d.c.

IW
IW

Cos

O.5fLF
50fLF
16fLF
0.02fLF
1 00pF
O.5fLF
50fLF
O.OlfLF

C59
C60

0.25fLF
5000pF

C61
C62

5000pF
7000pF
O.5fLF
16fLF
1 0-50pF
O. l fLF
2500pF
1 500pF
300pF

%
%
%
%
%

C50
C5l
C52

20

C5 7

C53
C55
C56

10 %

do.

do.
do.
do.

Rating

Rating Tolerance

!W
!W
W

S 0/
.0

20 %
20 %
20 %
1 %
or matched
do.
do.
5 %
10 %
20 %
20 %
20 %
20 %
20 %

C63
C64

CSI
CS2

CS3
CS4

working)
Type
250
Paper
12
Electrolytic
450
do.
Paper
350
Silvered mica
350
Paper
250
Electrolytic
12
Silvered mica
350
Paper
Silvered

500
350

do.
do.
Paper
Electrolytic
Silvered mica
Paper
Silvered mica
do.
do.

350
350
500
450
250
500
250
250
250

CS5
Single-pole changeover switch.
S7

Tolerance
20 %
10 %
10 %
20 %
1 o
10
or matched
20 %
1 %
or matched
do.
10 %
20

10 %
10 %
10 %

All resistors may be !W rating, except where otherwise stated.

39

..

-r----------+-

Type

z
o

The Williamson Amplifier

Fig. 30. Modified input cir

cuit for use without trans
former when one
side of the pickup
must be eorthed.

I
T

RC networks, details of which have already been

published . '
Checking the Preamplifiers.-When a pre-ampli
fier has been constructed, it is advisable to measure
its response curve over the audible frequency range
and beyond, in order to ensure that nothing is amiss.
This is particularly so in the case of the three-stage
pre-amplifier.
To facilitate this measurement the 'n etworks of Figs.
3I and 32 have been devised.
These circuits, when
fed with constant-voltage variable-frequency input,
ooo6J.LF

P I CKUP
I NPUT

INPUT
VOLTAGE

"n

O,oosJ.LF

INPUT
(CO;TANT VOLTAGE

(CONSTANT

TAP AT RESISTANCE EQUAL TO

IMPEDANCE OF PICK UP IF
LOWER THAN 330D

3300
OUTPUT TO
PRE-AMPlIFIER

( DISCONNECT

FOR E M! CHARACT ERISTIC

Fig. 32.

TAP AT RESISTANCE EQUAL TO

IMPEDANCE OF PICKUP I F
LOWER TH A N 3"3kD

3 3kfi
OUTPUT TO
PRE -AMPlIF I ER

Fig. 31. Simulator for Decca and E.M.I. 78-r.p.m. recording

characteristics.

Printed in England by

Simulator for Decca 33t r.p.m. L.P. characteristic.

produce outputs which are, respectively, replicas of

the standard and L . P . characteristics.
To test a pre-amplifier, the appropriate network
should be connected between an oscillator and the
pre-amplifier input. The output from the pre-ampli
fier for a constant voltage to the network should then
follow the response curve already published for the
appropriate circuit (Figs. I 4 and I 7 , pp . 25 and 27) .
Acknowledgment.-The writer is indebted to Decca
for information about their recording characteristic .
I West and Kelly, " Pickup
November, 1950, pp. 386-391.

Cornwall Press

Input

Circuits,"

Ltd., Paris Garden, LUlldun, S . E . I .

Wireless World,

L1604-Il KS1613

KS

WI L L l A M S O N

H I G H FI D E L l T Y

A M P L l FI E R. S

* The Goodsell version of the World famous Williamson Am plifier is to full specification,
laboratory b u i lt and tested.
* All com ponents are adeq uately rated to ensure long life and t rouble free operation.
* Fully tropicalized version. Type GW I SIC is available for use overseas.
* Al l models have separate power s u pply i n corporated on the same chassis for use with
m u lti-stage pre-ampl ifiers. tape pre-a m p lifiers and tuner u n its.

A laboratory report of a Will iamson Ampl ifier, o u r

type GW I 8/C, which was subm itted t o i ntermodu
lation tests. The resu lts using an Al tec Lancing
I n termodulation Distortion Meter and Boonton Beat
Frequency Oscillator are given.
The report on the Goodsell pre-am plifier showed it
to be a comparable u n it with simi lar figures.
Type GW I 8 (standard model )
Price 33 : 5 : 0
Price 36 : 0 : 0
Type GW 1 8/C (as i l l ustrated)

P R E - A M P Ll F I E R

I . M . Distortion Power Output

TON E

2%
0.3%
0.9%
0.2 %

1 5 watts
1 0 watts
1 5 watts
10 watts

C O N TR O L

I
I
I

Frequency
Ratio I : 4

40 &
40 &
1 00 &
1 00 &

2,000 c!s.
2,000 cis.
2,000 cis.
2,000 cis.

U N I TS

M u lti-stage, low noise tone control u n its with radio i n put and gramophone pre-am plifier. Eq ualization for micro
groove and standard recording characteristics, S position steep cut low-pass filter and cathode follower out-put.
Feedback over every stage ensu res negligible d istortion.
Type PFA with equal ization for British and Ame rican reco rd i ng characteristics
LP and 78. Price 21. : 10 : 0
Type FUTC with LP and 78 equal ization and 1 5 mv sensitivity. Price 1 1. : 11. : 0
MANU FACT URED

BY-

G OO D S E LL LTD. , 4 0 , GAR D N E R STR E ET, B R I G HTO N , l

Phone : Brighton 2 6 7 3 5

YA LY E S
L.63

fo r t h e

W I L LIAM S O N
KT.66

AM P LI FI E R
The fol low i n g Osram valves are specified :
L.63,

* 8.65,

KT.66,

U .52.

Use of KT .66 is essential to obtain optimum

performance of this equipment.

The characteristics of KT .66 and 6L6G are

not identical.
Circuit information

on

Quality Amplifier

for DC!AC operation may be obtained from

the Osram Valves & Electromc Dept., Magnet
House, Kingsway, W.C.2.
* B.65

for any two

8.65

double triode as alternative

type.

L.63

U .52

THE GENERAL ELECTRIC CO., LTD., MAG N ET HOUSE,

KIN GSWAY,

W.C.2